Trusted Saskatoon Mortgage Brokers Tip About The 2020 Housing Market

12. Aug 2020 Admin Saskatoon Mortgages, Trusted Tips

Homebuilders Deals & Incentives on New Construction

Mike and Crystal Green couldn’t have picked a worse time to look for a new home. In mid-February, Mike was offered a promotion to be a regional sales manager at a computer security company. The catch was the couple would need to relocate

The Greens accepted an offer on their home two days after it went on the market in early March. But by then, the Greens didn’t feel safe flying to check out houses given the coronavirus pandemic. The government was urging workers to stay home if possible and practice social distancing when out in public to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

That wound up working in their favour. The Greens went online and took a virtual tour of a home they liked. It was in a new development. They were able to choose custom details via Zoom and email—and got a discount on their new home

If they closed in March, and the builder would throw in a free Whirlpool refrigerator, washer, and dryer as well.

The Greens have plenty of company on the receiving end of a wave of aggressive incentives for buyers of new construction. With a global health crisis raging and the ensuing financial fallout with many workers laid off, homebuilders around North America are offering discounts, throwing in freebies, and covering closing costs to attract buyers and close deals.

They had to do something. Tours of new-homes have dropped and more potential buyers deciding to put off their new home searches until things truly settle.

CMHC

2020 summer edition of the Housing Market Outlook report provides forecasts for Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal. It builds on the Spring 2020 edition that focused on housing market activity for Canada and the provinces.

These reports give high and low range projections on new construction, home sales, house prices and rental market activity.

Housing forecast overview for Canada’s major urban centres

Sales and construction have dropped
House prices will likely fall because of uncertainty over the economy’s path
It is possible that vacancy rates increase in the rental market
Recovery in major markets is highly uncertain and will vary considerably

For Canada’s 3 largest cities, there had been steep employment declines according to Statistics Canada:

18% in Montreal
17% in Vancouver
15% in Toronto

Such large employment and income declines, coupled with uncertainty over the future trajectory of the virus, will lower the demand for housing in the urban centres. Housing starts should rebound by year-end, as projects, settled before the pandemic, should be starting soon. Rental apartment starts will benefit from the slowdown in the demand for homeownership.

By 2022, housing prices should be following a slight upward trend and even exceed their pre-pandemic levels.

Read the full CMHC report here

Buyers may also get deals on custom homes

While deals on newly constructed homes abound, buyers can also shop around for discounted lots where they can have their dream homes built.

Trusted Saskatoon Mortgage Brokers Share Advice On Revenue Properties

13. Feb 2020 Admin

Buying a home is one of the most important and exciting steps in your life.... now that pesky financing! Deal with people who can offer you and your family the best options for you.

CONSIDERING A REVENUE PROPERTY IN SASKATOON?

When it comes to a revenue property having options and the best rate possible are at the top of the list.

Buying an investment property is a popular option for Canadians looking at different ways to invest their money. However, unlike the mortgage you took out on your principal residence, financing an investment property is a little more complex.

1. How Many Revenue Properties

The number of units in the building and whether or not you'll be occupying one of the units are the two major components that control what your financing will look like. When you start shopping around for an investment property, the first thing you need to consider is the number of units your building will have. Most buildings with 1-4 units are zoned residential, so the qualification criteria and financing options from lenders are only slightly more difficult than that of a mortgage similar to what you have on your principal residence. If it's a multi-unit property, the second thing to consider is if you, the owner, will be living in one of the units or not. If you will be occupying one of the units, the property would be considered owner-occupied. If all of the units will be rented out, your property would be considered non-owner occupied.

However, buildings with 5 or more units are zoned commercial, so a lender would require that you take out a commercial mortgage on it. With a commercial mortgage, the qualification criteria is even tougher to meet and interest rates are often much higher.

2. Downpayment

An investor will have to put down at least 20 percent to buy a property from a typical bank... On top of the down payment, an investor will have to pay closing costs, which can range from two to four percent of the loan amount.

Trusted Saskatoon Mortgage Broker Asks, Is Your Mortgage Coming Up for Renewal?

14. Mar 2019 Trusted Saskatoon Saskatoon Mortgages, Trusted Tips

Is Your Mortgage Coming Up for Renewal?

Did you know… Over the next 1-2 years, half of all Canadian mortgages will be up for renewal?

If you’re unsure about your renewal date, now’s the perfect time to find out. But, whatever you do, be sure to have an experienced mortgage broker negotiate on your mortgage at renewal with multiple lenders – including banks, credit unions, and trust companies – to ensure you secure the best mortgage product and rate based on your specific needs.

Brokers can pull one credit report and shop your deal with numerous lenders. If you try to do this yourself, each lender will pull a report, which will negatively impact your credit score and could prevent you from qualifying for the best possible mortgage.

Too many people simply sign the renewal form sent by their bank/lender up to six months prior to the renewal date without shopping their options. In fact, this is one of the biggest mistakes a homeowner can make.

Accepting this offer most often means you’ll be paying way too much for your mortgage – on average, 1-1.5% higher than you should be paying – and/or your new mortgage won’t adapt to your changing needs as a borrower. It’s important to remember that lenders are in the business of making money, so they won’t often offer the best rate in the renewal letter.

On a $300,000 mortgage, this higher interest rate could translate into a difference of more than $250.00 per month… and over five years you would have paid $15,000+ in additional interest! That’s a lot of money that could have been paid towards the principal balance and helped pay down your mortgage faster.

Mortgage renewal is also the perfect time to take out equity in your home to renovate, pay down debt, send a child to school, take a dream vacation or use however you choose. The benefit of taking money out during renewal is you don’t have to pay any fees to break your mortgage early.

And if your mortgage isn’t up for renewal just yet, it may also be beneficial to have a mortgage broker conduct a free annual mortgage checkup to ensure your mortgage is working for you and keeping more of your hard-earned money in your bank account each month. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain from staying on top of both your short- and long-term mortgage needs.

Kari Calder A Trusted Saskatoon Realtor tip on the new tax implications of selling your home

13. Feb 2017 Admin Saskatoon Mortgages, Saskatoon Real Estate, Trusted Tips

The decision to purchase your home is one of the most important decisions you will ever make, and will also be one of your largest investments. Done right, it can also be one of the most exciting and fulfilling times in your life! Kari Calder a saskatoon Realtor with Century 21 Fusion is there to help you through the process, and provide you and your family with the peace of mind that comes with knowing that you have a realtor working with your best interests in mind. In Kari's latest real estate tip Kari explains the tax implications of selling your home. Kari Calder is a Trusted Saskatoon Real Estate Agent!

In 2017, Finance Minister at the time Bill Morneau introduced changes to the current tax model around selling your primary residence. This, along with the new mortgage rules is an attempt to ensure foreign investors abide by our current tax laws. Although these changes are focused on foreign investors, the changes will also have an effect on those Canadians who inadvertently did not pay tax when selling their principal residence.

Disposing of your principal residence

When you sell your home or when you are considered to have sold it, usually you do not have to pay tax on any gain from the sale because of the principal residence exemption. This is the case if the property was solely your principal residence for every year you owned it.

Reporting the sale of your principal residence

If you sold your property in 2021 and it was your principal residence you have to report the sale and designate the property on Schedule 3, Capital Gains (or Losses). In addition, you also have to complete. page 1 of Form T2091 if the property you sold was your principal residence for all the years you owned it, or for all years except one year, being the year in which you replaced your principal residence.

You have to report the sale.

For the sale of a principal residence in 2016 and subsequent years, the CRA will only allow the principal residence exemption if you report the disposition and designation of your principal residence on your income tax and benefit return. If you forget to make this designation in the year of the disposition, it is very important to ask the CRA to amend your income tax return for that year. The CRA will be able to accept a late designation in certain circumstances, but a penalty may apply.

Here’s another important part to note. If you fail to report the sale, you won’t be entitled to the principal residence tax exemption. If you forget to designate a property as your principal residence in the year of the sale, you could ask CRA to amend your tax return for that year. They likely will do so for a fee.

The onus is placed on the homeowner to understand the rules. What can you do going forward?

Ensure you’re filling out a Form T2091 to designate a property as your principal residence.
Talk to your accountant if you have any questions about whether or not your real estate sale was considered the sale of a principal residence (for example, adding or removing a suite to the home you live in may require you to report even if you haven’t sold)
You’ll also want to track the cost of capital improvements you make to your residence going forward. Keep your receipts! This could save you money later on taxes if it turns out the sale of your property is no longer qualified under the principal residence tax exemption.

Kari Calder is one of Saskatoon's top Century 21 Fusion real estate agents. Kari can assist with all of your Saskatoon buying and selling real estate needs and she is a TRUSTED SASKATOON REALTOR