2302-140 Sagewood Blvd. Airdrie, AB

This is a fabulous south-facing, corner unit located on the top floor of a quality complex! You are sure to love the amount of natural sunlight from the south exposure, along with the unique abundance of windows that you will not find in an average unit! The kitchen is one-of-a-kind within this complex, boasting granite counter tops, stainless-steel appliances and beautiful cabinetry. There is a walk-in closet in the master bedroom, a 4 piece ensuite as well as plenty of windows. The second bedroom also has a large closet. There is in-suite storage and laundry as well as 2 parking stalls, 1 above and 1 underground. You don’t want to miss out on this amazing unit – drive to Sagewood Blvd. in Airdrie today!

View Virtual Tour of this Home

Bridge Financing

Hello everyone. Its Josephine Ng, your Mobile Mortgage Specialist with TD Canada Trust. Today I wanted to talk about a topic that not everyone is too familiar with and that is Bridge Financing. I have had several customers recently inquire about this option or have actually needed one so I thought I would blog about it. Bridge loans are basically temporary loans for existing home owners to bridge the gap between the purchase of a new home and the sale of their existing home when the closing dates are different. It allows you to access the equity in your home before the sale in order to purchase a new home. Now for most purchase and sale transactions, people will try to line up the same dates. But in the event you take possession of your new home a few days or even a few months before the sale of your existing home, a bridge finance may be required. Usually, most lenders including TD won’t provide bridge financing to their customers unless they have comitted to taking a mortgage with them. However, it never hurts to ask. In the lending world, there’s always exceptions that can be made.

The maximum term that a bridge finance can be held is 90 days. Collateral mortgage security may be required in some instances when the term exceeds 90 days. The amount of the loan obviously cannot exceed the available equity of your property being sold. Talk to your lender or feel free to give me a call to find out how to calculate the amount available to you for a bridge loan. There is usually more to it than just calculating the difference between your sale price and outstanding mortgage. We also have to take into consideration any pre-payment penalties, 2nd mortgages outstanding, real estate commissions, and other closing costs. The interest charged on bridge loans are usually a variable interest rate that fluctuates with the banks prime lending rate. When the lawyer handling the sale of your home receives the funds, the bridge loan must be repaid. One important thing to note is that all parties on title of the existing home must be on the bridge finance loan as borrowers.  So to qualify for a bridge loan, you must have the following:

• Approval for a TD Mortgage or Home Equity line of Credit on the new residence
• Firm purchase agreement with all conditions waived
• Firm sale agreement with all conditions waived

If your existing mortgage is not with TD, then you will also be asked to provide copies of the Discharge Statements for all encumbrances on title, lawyers fees etc. Remember, no matter what type of mortgage financing you are looking for, it makes sense to speak to me first. If you have any questions or would like to leave a comment, please do so below. Thank You!

Sincerely,
Josephine Ng
www.tdmortgage.wordpress.com

Showing Houses in Coventry Hills

I was showing houses in Coventry Hills in the NW of Calgary and came across this… I couldn’t agree more!

Are You A Stalker?

Jared Chamberlain Video Blogs about how you may be a stalker. A Home Stalker that is. Do you find yourself driving by and ’stalking’ your new home after you’ve purchased it? It’s OK to admit it! If you would like to leave your comments or thoughts, please do so below or email Jared at Jared@tcgroup.ca.

Photoshoot at Condo in Airdrie

Waiting to do a photoshoot at a condo in Airdrie. Hope the weather holds up.

Porting or Replacing your mortgage

Hi everyone! It Josephine Ng, your mobile Mortgage Specialist with TD Canada Trust. Last week I touched a little on IRD and how choosing the wrong term can cost you thousands of dollars. So today I wanted to talk about what options you may have to avoid paying a penalty with your lender if you decide to move and take out another mortgage. Two things I should note here. First, the information here is specific to TD Canada Trust. Second, most portability and replacement options are only applicable if you take out another mortgage with the same Financial Instution that you took your first mortgage out with.

So what’s the difference between portability and replacement? Portability waives all or part of your pre-payment charge, and allows you to take your current rate and term with you when you move or refinance. This is usually applicable to fixed rate mortgages only. A replacement mortgage also waives all or part of your prepayment charge when you have already paid or are being charged 3 months compensation on the discharge of your existing mortgage and you are replacing it with a new closed term mortgage taking a new rate and a new term. These are usually applicable to variable rate mortgages only. So for example, lets say you are currently locked into a 5 year term at 4.5%. Youre 2 years in and you decide to move. Assuming that interest rates are the same or higher, it doesn’t make sense for you to pay a penalty to take out a new term and new rate on the purchase of your new home. So in this scenario, you may want to port your mortgage. Let’s look at another scenario. If you are currently locked into a closed variable mortgage term, most Financial Instutions will charge 3 months interest penalty if you pay it out before the term is up. Again, if you decide to move before your term is up, this mortgage is replaceable. In other words, after you pay your 3 months compensation and you take out another closed mortgage of equal or greater value, this charge should be reimbursed.

With a port, typically the posession date should be 120 days before or after the payout of your old mortgage. You must have a firm agreement for both purchase and sale and like I said earlier, they’re only applicable to fixed rate mortgages. If your new mortgage happens to be more than the old mortgage, the existing rate is transferred with additional funds priced at current rates. The final rate is a blended rate of the existing and new rates. With a replacement mortgage, the new mortgage must be granted within one year of the old mortgage discharge. And if you’re existing mortgage has an IRD instead of a 3 month compensation charge, then you won’t be eligible for a rebate. Most replacement rebates are applicable to variable rate mortgages only. Keep in mind that the new mortgage must be replaced by a new CLOSED term mortgage (variable or fixed) and the amount can be less than, equal to or greater than the discharged mortgage.

This may all seem very confusing but the bottom line is to make sure that you ask your financial institution what their policies are for porting and replacing. Most people who take out a  5 year fixed term don’t end up staying in their home for 5 years. The last thing you want to find out is that you cannot port or replace your mortgage and pay a hefty penalty. No matter what type of mortgage financing you are looking for, it makes sense to speak to me first. Thank You!

Sincerely,
Josephine Ng
www.tdmortgage.wordpress.com

June 2010 Calgary Real Estate Market Update

Jared Chamberlain, a Calgary Realtor®, video blogs about the current market conditions in Calgary and his reasons why the values have increased slightly in single family homes and more in condos and why the number of sales have decreased from last month. If you don’t care for Jared’s thoughts or would like to leave a comment please do so below or email Jared at Jared@tcgroup.ca

Testimonial Video for Designing Spacez

Jared Chamberlain does a video testimonial for Designing Spacez, whom The Chamberlain Group has used for all their staging needs for their listings.

If you as a client of ours would like to leave any feedback or comments about Designing Spacez from your personal experience, please do so below!

2128 Chilcotin RD NW Calgary

This is a quaint half duplex that is located in the heart of Charleswood. The location of this home is spectacular as you are steps from major transit, schools, shopping and most of all the beautiful parks that wind through the tri-wood communities. This is a 4 bedroom home with 2 up, 2 down and 2 bathrooms. The hardwood floors on the main floor have just been refinished within the last month. There is also a brand new double detached garage that was just completed and is ready for your use. The garden in the front of the home is an approx. $10,00 perennial garden that has taken over 10 years to perfect. Drive by Chilcotin Road today to view the amazing surroundings and a fabulous home.

VIEW VIRTUAL TOUR OF THIS HOME!

Important Questions to Consider Before Choosing the Right Mortgage

Hi Everyone! It’s Josephine Ng, your Mobile Mortgage Specialist with TD Canada Trust. With over 12000 listings in and around Calgary at the end of may, I have been getting a few inquiries on payout penalties and porting options which I’ll touch on next week. But today I wanted to go over some very important questions that you, as a first time home buyer or existing home owner should consider before choosing a mortgage. Last week I talked a little bit about IRD and how the lowest rate may save you hundreds, but the wrong term can cost you thousands. So how do you figure out what term is best for you? Well here are some questions that your mortgage specialist should be asking you and something for you to think about before making  your next mortgage decision.

1. Are you intending to pay off your mortgage or make any prepayments over the next few years?
2. Do you have any plans to sell your home or move within the next few years? If so, Will you need the same financing or more?
3. Are you more comfortable with a fixed term where your interest rate is locked-in, or a variable term where your interest rate can fluctuate from month to month?
4. Do you feel comfortable watching the interest rates so that you can lock in when rates increase?
5. How comfortable are you with interest rates that fluctuate?
6. Do you plan on borrowing for home renovations or for investments in the next 12 months?
7. Based on current mortgage interest rates, would you consider refinancing to consolidate any high interest credit balances you may have outstanding?
8. Other than rate, what else is important to you?

Without going over these basic questions, you may end up choosing the wrong term and end up paying thousands of dollars in penalties. No matter what type of mortgage financing you are looking for, it makes sense to speak to me first. If you have any questions or would like to add to this post, feel free to leave me a comment. Have a great weekend!

Sincerely,
Josephine Ng
www.tdmortgage.wordpress.com

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