Closing Costs, Part 1: Recurring and Non-Recurring Costs
The one term you’ll hear a lot when buying a home is “closing costs.” At first, it may appear that everyone’s getting all worked about them, but you. How bad can closing costs be after all? And why are your real estate agent and your mortgage broker talking about things like having the seller pay them? Closing costs can add up to a lot of money, and this is why every expert will advise you to take them seriously when thinking about your future mortgage. In this first part of our closing cost mini-series, we’ll take a look at the two different types: recurring and non-recurring.
Read moreHow Does Rent-to-Own Work?
We touched briefly on rent-to-own homes a couple of months ago when we explained how to recognize the scams from the legitimate offers on the market. And now that you know what you’re looking for, just how exactly do rent-to-own homes work?
Read moreCanadian Home Prices at an All-Time High
Don’t worry about what the rest of the world is doing – if you’re Canadian and you’re selling your house right now, you’re likely to get top dollar for it, according to a recent report from the Teranet-National Bank Composite House Price Index. As of July 2011, resale home prices rose on the Index to 146.51, the highest it’s ever been. But what does that mean exactly?
Read moreHow Much do You Need for a Down Payment?
Lots of people, especially people who don’t have a lot of extra pocket change, too often brush off the idea of ever being able to get a mortgage – because they don’t have the necessary 20% down payment. So if you find a home and can’t immediately cough up at least 20% of the purchase price, you can forget about it, right? There’s obviously no point in even trying. Well, there is actually. While it might be harder to get a mortgage without a 20% down payment, and you’ll probably end up paying more in the end, you should never deny yourself your dream home just because you don’t think you have enough cash.
Read moreCanadians are a Restless Bunch
You’d think that finding the home of your dreams, getting yourself all settled in, and finding a way to comfortably pay your mortgage every month would be enough for most people. But we Canadians aren’t happy with that. We want bigger, better, more, more, more! At least, that’s what a survey recently done by TD Canada Trust has found out.
Read moreWhat are Closing Costs?
As exciting as it is to purchase a home, many home buyers are also always looking at the bottom line: how much is this home going to cost me? And while looking at the listing price is a good place to start forming an idea of just how much exactly you’re going to pay for a home, you need to also figure in some additional costs. These are the closing costs, the money you will have to pay in addition to the price of the home, just to make the sale of the home happen. Knowing about closing costs, and which ones you’ll have to pay, is a huge help when it comes time to make that final purchase
Read moreTrying to Choose Between a Condo or a House?
For many, the choice is easy. The benefits of living in a condominium are far too great to overlook. No weekends spent cutting the grass, no worrying about small repairs, and you might even get a swimming pool or tennis court thrown in. Others can’t stand the thought of additional condo fees on top of a mortgage, neighbours crammed up against each other, and small living quarters. For these homeowners, a house is the only way to go. But what if you can see yourself living in either a condo, or a house?
Read more
Contact Us
Contact us today to set up an appointment.