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  Top Tips for Getting Your First Mortgage Taking out a mortgage is likely one of the most significant financial decisions you will ever make. With the rising property prices in Canada, more people are looking to take out a mortgage to purchase their first home. If you’re currently looking to buy a new property, here are some top tips to improve your chances of being approved for a mortgage. Improve Your Credit Score Credit scores are categorized as poor, fair, good, very good, and excellent in Canada using a scoring system between 300-900. The category you fall into depends on your previous financial decisions. Being in debt and having several late payments will lower your score, making it less likely for your application to be accepted.   Mortgage lenders will use your score to determine how financially trustworthy you are. They want to lend to people who will be reliable in making their monthly repayments. You can check your credit score for free o...

  Important Factors to Consider When Applying for a Mortgage Unless you’re paying for your new house in cash, you will likely need to apply for a mortgage. There are many important factors to consider when you make an application with mortgage providers. Your Earnings To qualify for a mortgage, you need to have a reliable source of income. Your income can come from several sources, including your salary, child support, or stock dividends. If you are self-employed, it’s usually a more complex process as this line of work is generally labelled as unreliable and inconsistent. However, if you can provide consistent payslips showing earnings from the past three or more years of being self-employed, you are more likely to be accepted for a mortgage. Proof of Income Mortgage lenders will require proof of earnings. They need to know that you are reliable and that you can afford the monthly mortgage repayments. For t...

    What to Do When You’re a First-Time Buyer As a first-time buyer, it can feel like there are a million and one things to do. Although it is a lengthy process, it doesn’t have to be complicated.   Here are some top tips on what you need to do if you’re buying your first property. Find an Area Buying a home is a huge commitment. You may have been saving up for years to get your own place, so you want to pick a place that is perfect for you. Research a few different areas. Identify what the average property prices are and check out the local facilities. It’s also a good idea to physically go to the places you’re interested in to get a feel for the community and atmosphere. Arrange Viewings Plan to take a look at as many properties as possible in your chosen area. Viewings are usually performed either by the current homeowner or an estate agent. Make a list of everything you’d like to ask about the property and the surrounding...

  How to Get Started in Real Estate Investments Canada’s real estate market is growing by the year. With more and more people seeing incredible returns, it seems that real estate investment is a great opportunity to make a significant income and enjoy yourself at the same time.   How can you get started in real estate? Many Canadians worry that they have little to no experience or not enough money to make an initial investment. If this sounds like you, here are some simple steps you can follow to make the process much easier and less daunting. Start Saving Despite what many people think, you don’t need to have hundreds of thousands of dollars to invest in real estate. However, you will need some money to get started. To buy a property, you will need to put in a down payment . In Canada, this is usually 20% of the total price of the property. Start saving as soon as you’ve decided to invest. The quicker y...