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The Basics Of Mortgage
History attests to the fact that homeownership is a pretty good investment. But sometimes, it can be a money-losing project. You know the housing crash? You don’t want to experience what the victims did. Know the basics about mortgage and how you can make sure it will be a win-win deal for your family.
Definition of Mortgage
Mortgage is a financial transaction wherein a debtor charges his real or personal property to a creditor as a security for a debt. This transaction is most common in property purchases. The property is returned to the debtor on the condition that he/she pays the debt within a given period of time.
In more simple terms, a mortgage is a loan that one takes to finance the purchase of a home. It can be the biggest debt one will incur in his lifetime. Since most mortgages are paid full in 15 – 30 years of monthly payments, it pays to get a clear understanding of how a mortgage works.
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Down Payment
The down payment is the amount you are required to pay upfront. That amount is deducted from the total mortgage amount. In Canada, a loan amount less than or equal to $500,000 has a down payment equivalent to 5% of that amount. For instance, a $400,000 loan has a down payment of $20,000. Loans more than $500,000 have down payments subject to this computation:
- $500,000 x 5% = 25,000
- Any portion above $500,000 is multiplied to 10% and then added to 25,000. For a $600,000 loan, the total down payment will be $25,000 + (100,000 x 10%) $10,000 = $35,000.
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Interest Rates
Interest rates are either fixed or variable. If you want everything to remain constant throughout the amortization period, go for a fixed rate. This is useful for those who want to generate a certain level of financial security and make budgeting predictable in the coming 20 or 25 years.
On the other hand, choosing a variable rate allows a creditor to be flexible in terms of payments. The rates may change down the road, but you can’t be sure if rate changes will give you savings or make you lose money.
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What to Choose?
Fixed or Variable Rate?
A fixed mortgage rate may be good for you if you foresee budget to be tight in the coming years and if you are the kind who doesn’t like taking risks. A fixed rate will also shield you from financial pressures should the interest rate abruptly go up over your mortgage term. Constancy is the key there. If you don’t like changes, especially sudden ones, have a mortgage with a fixed rate.
Some prefer variability over constancy and they are good with having with a variable rate. What does this mean? It appears that these individuals are comfortable with the idea of an increase in payments over the term. The advantage is: the central bank may declare lowering the rate during the mortgage’s term. That means lower payments for everyone!
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Amortization and Mortgage Term
Get familiar with two terms: amortization period and mortgage term.
- Amortization period – the period within which you are required to pay your mortgage in full.
- Mortgage Term – the period within which a current rate remains constant. After a mortgage term, another rate may be applied with its corresponding mortgage term.
After the end of the mortgage term, say five years, you will be allowed to negotiate for a lower rate for paying the rest of your mortgage payments. A longer amortization period may not be advisable since you will incur a higher interest rate for that. But some prefer a longer amortization period because monthly payments are lower compared to a shorter amortization period.
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Preapproval
Make sure that you go through the preapproval stage within which you set a time to talk to a financial institution about your qualifications. Important items to talk about are how much you should borrow and at what interest rate it is affordable for you.
This step can be beneficial in many ways. It will save you time getting your mortgage approved and will make you see how much it is your institution is willing to lend you. Further, it gives the opportunity of being able to lock-in an interest rate. When the interest rate goes up during the acquisition of your mortgage, your locked-in interest rate will be unaffected. If the interest rate goes down, you are entitled to get your mortgage at the lower rate.
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Payment Options
You also have fixed and variable for payment options. For a fixed payment, the monthly payments are constant as the rate is constant through the term. Changes in the interest rates are immaterial. In contrast, variable payments can cause changes in monthly payments depending on the interest rate changes determined by the Canadian Central Bank.
Tip: Mortgages with variable rates can be also be further classified as “convertible”. A convertible variable rate allows the creditor to make a shift to a fixed rate within the mortgage term.
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Mortgage Cost in Toronto: A Case Study
A couple thinks it’s time to move to a larger home. Examining the family’s resources, they determined they can pay up to $2000 for monthly payments. The couple’s combined monthly incomes total $100,000/yr. They estimated heating cost to be at $350/mo and property taxes at $250/mo. Car loan payments is $500/mo. The home’s estimated value is placed at $350,000.
They entered these data on a mortgage qualifier online calculator. With 4.5% as interest rate, the calculator showed a down payment of $25,000 and a monthly payment of $1,848 (this includes insurance due to the down payment being less that 20% of the home value). Amortization period is 25 years and mortgage term is 5 years.
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Home Buyers Plan
Study the Home Buyers Plan of the government. If you are a first-time homebuyer, you may take $25,000 from your RRSP (Registered Retirement Savings Plan) to pay part or the entire down payment. Should you tap into your RRSP, the law requires you to pay it back within 15 years. Delinquent payment will result to tax penalties.