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Host: Hi! Thanks for joining us again. We have with us Josh Higgelke, founder of Great
Canada Mortgage and a Partner with Axiom Mortgage Solutions.
Josh, thanks very much for joining us again. Josh: Thank you.
Host: So here is the agile question. When I shop for a mortgage, I always firstly think
how am I going to get the best possible rate? I want low rates.
Well, we’ve got low rates now. But we’re talking of a fraction of a point here and
a fraction of a point there. Is the lowest rate necessarily the best way to go in today’s
market? Josh: Do you know what? Not always. Now, I
don’t want to discount the fact that a low interest rate is a huge portion of a good
mortgage because it is. Let’s be honest. Everybody wants a great rate and that’s
what we want for everyone. But that being said, there’s a lot of other
things you need to look at. Some of these banks offer what’s called “teaser rates”.
They will get you in another branch because they’ve got a great rate advertised. But
when you read the fine print, it might not be the mortgage that you’re actually looking
for. They will have maybe a reduced advertising periods. A lot of times they won’t allow
you to do very much in terms of pre-payment to pay your mortgage off faster.
So, some of those banks use these rates as bait to get you in there. And once you’re
there, they can sell you a different mortgage which may come at a higher rate.
So, rate isn’t always the only thing that you―it’s not the only thing you should
look at. Yes, it’s a big part of the mortgage. But certainly you want to look at some of
the fine prints as well to make sure you’ve got all the payment options you’re looking
for, the ability to pay the mortgage off faster and really a mortgage that’s tailored to
your needs. Host: I’ve heard people tried to transfer
when they’re selling house or they’re moving. It becomes a sticky point in moving
that mortgage. Are there some [00.02.03] issues there sometimes with some of these locked
down low rates? Or is that at all related? Josh: No. You’re absolutely correct in saying
that. And that’s some of the small prints. There are some mortgages out there where you
could not refinance out of the mortgage. You’d have to actually sell the home in order to
break your current term. So, they really, really lock clients into their mortgage. And
that’s stuff that some overlooks because they’re blinded by a good rate, right? That’s
just going back to what we discussed earlier. You got to really make sure you know what
you’re getting yourself into and a very low rate may not always be your best option.
Host: Great tips once again. A good help in demystifying the world of low rates which,
boy, they are low right now. Thanks very much for joining us.
Josh: My pleasure, thank you. Host: Once again, Josh Higgelke. He is a Partner
with Axiom Mortgage Solutions. Josh’s website is GreatCanadaMortgage.com. It is a place
where you can research, ask questions and get answers.
Thanks for joining everyone.