Creating Mortgage Fit

“There Can Considerable Work And Skill Required To Get The Right Mortgage In Place”

The process of locating and securing a mortgage for your home or commercial property is easy in some aspects and hard in others.

For instance, there are many situations where you can qualify for mortgage financing at a number of different places, but the subtle differences in the mortgage commitment offering can make one deal better than the others. I many situations, borrowers end up getting a good mortgage solution when a better solution might have been available.

For the more straight forward deal, this can have a lot to do with the mortgage companies a mortgage broker is working with. Some brokers will work with a limited number of mortgage providers which will limit the amount of choices you provide by the broker. There is nothing wrong with this pure say, but its not the same as taking a broader market approach when more financing programs are being considered.

Creating mortgage fit is even more of an issue in situations where there aren’t a lot of choices and borrower is having a hard time finding sold options to consider.

Especially with commercial properties, where essentially every single properly is unique in some way or another, and the borrower financial and credit profile will be unique as well, it can be hard to secure credit, even from very interested lending sources.

The reason for this is that all types of lenders have very rigid lending criteria where the amount of gray area or wiggle room to make a deal work can be very limited.

Add to that the fact that all of the interpretation and implementation of the lender’s rules and regulations are preformed by human, each potentially taking a slightly different approach from the other, and the challenges in figuring out what can actually get approved and funded can be considerable.

This can be where the skill of an experienced mortgage broker can make all the difference in the world between getting mortgage financing and not getting financed.

A seasoned mortgage broker knows that its both art and science at times to get a deal completed. More specifically, knowing the particular lending and funding criteria of a specific lender is science for the most part, but trying to figure out a way to meet all the lender’s requirements can many times be about the art and creativity of the broker.

This type of creative deal making approach typically only comes with many years of experience working through deals with lenders and developing a communication style and is more likely to engage a effort to make the deal work than getting a flat turn down.

If you require mortgage financing for a challenging residential, commercial, or industrial property, I suggest that you give me a call so I can go over your situation in detail and discuss different financing strategies or approaches that may be available to you.

Click Here To Speak With Toronto Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh For A Free Assessment Of Your Mortgage Options

Better Understanding Of The Mortgage Business

“When It Comes To Using A Mortgage Broker, Sometimes It Can Be Hard To Separate Fact From Fiction In The Mortgage Business”

As a mortgage broker, part of what me and my colleges battle on a day to day basis is the information and misinformation about the services we offer and the cost benefit assessment of others with respect to what we have to offer to our clients.

The landscape has become more and more competitive over the last couple years and as a result there are more people taking the opportunity to voice their opinions regarding using a mortgage broker.

And while there is certainly nothing wrong with providing your opinion, especially in this age of social media that is based largely on discussion and opinion, there is a problem with putting out information, opinion, or rebuttal that does not speak from fact or available statistics and data.

I came across a piece in Canadian Mortgage Trends that did a very good job of correcting some mistakes discovered from another publication, specifically addressing four of what they refer to as mortgage misconceptions.

Here is a link to the article … http://www.canadianmortgagetrends.com/canadian_mortgage_trends/2011/09/a-few-misconceptions.html

As the article mentions, there are a lot of things you can likely do for yourself, but choose not to due to time restrictions and the potential cost of a sometimes steep learning curve.  Outside of getting help with a mortgage, there is investment advise,  writing your own will, and completing your taxes to name a few.

In my biased opinion, mortgage brokers are like every other type of services professional.

We have a service to provide that delivers value to our customers.  And similar to every other type of service provider and practitioner we should be held to a proper standard of customer care and held accountable for the quality of our work.

The mortgage business is not getting any less complex and with all the changes that regularly take place in the market, a professional and knowledgeable guide can truly save you time and money.

If you have any comments on the subject or have questions regarding mortgage broker services, please leave a comment or give me a call and I’ll be sure to get back to you right away.

Click Here To Speak To Toronto Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh

Mortgage Broker Put Down

“RBC Report From Internal Mortgage Specialist Throws Rocks At Mortgage Brokers”

As a Toronto mortgage broker, I am very proud of my profession and all the value I can add to my clients seeking assistance locating, securing, and administering mortgages for their residential, commercial, or industrial property.

I’m always quick to point out the many different ways mortgage brokers can add value to our customers in a manner in which they are financially better off or are put in a position to be able to make better financial decisions.

All that being said, while 35% to 40% of the annual mortgage applications are processed through a mortgage broker, the balance are completed directly by the mortgage lender.

Nothing wrong with that. There is competition and choice in the market, which is ultimately good for the customer.

It would be nice, although unrealistic, for mortgage brokers and the lender’s mortgage specialists to just get along and play nice.

Last week there was an example of what likely doesn’t help anyone in the market when an RBC mortgage specialist created a marketing piece to explain the differences between mortgage specialists and mortgage brokers.

In keeping with the rhetoric of the season provided daily by the federal election campaigns, this marketing piece basically says that mortgage specialists are superior to mortgage brokers and that customers should be aware of certain risks that come with working with a mortgage broker.

Here’s an article that gets into more detail as well as links that lead to the actual marketing piece I’m referencing to.

http://www.mortgagebrokernews.ca/news/controversial-document-infuriates-brokers/106537

Needless to say, I don’t agree with many of the comments made by this individual.  And there are plenty of mortgage brokers weighing in online with their displeasure to provide the counter arguements.

My purpose in bringing this up today is more about providing some basic perspective to anyone that’s interested.

Like any industry, there are lots of slices to this market and there are individuals on both sides of the fence that are really good at what they do because of their acquired expertise and dedication to their craft.

As a property owner seeking a mortgage, depending on the specific nature of your situation, there may also be times when a mortgage broker is more relevant to you than a mortgage specialist and vise versa.

The best thing of all for consumers is that there is a lot of excellent help out there for you, regardless of what you’re potential needs may be.  And with a little bit of work on your part qualifying those who can provide service, I’m pretty confident you will be able to find a mortgage expert that can give you the assistance you require.

Hopefully, all of us in this great industry can conduct ourselves as professionals and continue to make things better for all involved. Not sure how confusing the customer with stuff like this is good for anyone.

Competition is good.  We just need to keep it clean.

Click Here To Speak With Toronto Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh

Mortgage Broker Pros And Cons

“Toronto Mortgage Brokers Provide The Best Value Most Of The Time”

As a Toronto mortgage broker, I believe you’re better off working with a mortgage broker than going it alone, trying to locate the best deal available on the market to you and then figuring out how to meet all the lender requirements in the time you have to work with.

And not only do mortgage brokers have broader access to the market, they also maintain a pulse on how different programs may be changing and which ones may be newly introduced to the market.

The one area where a broker may not always be working to your full benefit is when they are closely affiliated with one or only a few lending sources that reward them for volume and their goal is to place your business there because it may be more advantageous to them than it is to you.

But even in situations where a mortgage broker is aligned with only a handful of mortgage providers, this can still be of benefit to you as 1) they may be able to get you a lower interest rate due to the volume they can leverage and 2) because they work closely with a smaller number of lenders, the broker will likely have an excellent working knowledge of the programs as well as all the administrative requirements to not only get approved but get the deal funded.

Further, working with a smaller lender base will also tend to result in much closer working relationships with the key personnel in the lenders office which can help get problems resolved faster and deals closed more often without issue.

So regardless of how many lenders a Toronto mortgage broker represents or works with, its all about how well they are able to look after you needs and provide the best value in terms of rates, mortgage program options, and service.

The best way to know you’re getting the best representation is to discuss these issues with your Toronto mortgage broker up front and ask for references from other customers they have previously dealt with.

A good working relationship is based on trust and transparency so don’t be afraid to ask your broker of choice how they plan on getting you a good deal and then go through their recommendations with them in detail.

My goal is to create a win/win scenario as I want to have you for a customer for a long time to come and want you to be able to speak positively about your experience dealing with me and my team.

Click Here To Speak With Toronto Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh

Toronto Mortgage Closing Adventures

“A Toronto Mortgage Closing Process Can Be a Hair Raising Experience At Times”

Most of the time, a Toronto Mortgage Closing will be quite uneventful. That being said, it can also be on of the most stressful things you can go through.

The challenge with any residential or commercial mortgage closing is that a number of things need to be done by a number of people by a certain date and time. The more people and things that are required, the more problems that can occur.

And if most of the required closing items need to be accomplished in a short period of time, you’ve likely got a large stress sandwich on your hands.

The keys to having a seamless or near seamless Toronto mortgage closing are to 1) make sure that all the requirements are clearly out lined and dealt with by the required parties as far a head of the closing date as possible; 2) start the overall mortgage process as far in advance as you can to allow additional time to deal with unexpected items or issues that could not have been foreseen; 3) work with an experienced mortgage broker who knows how to proactively get things lined up for a mortgage closing and who has lots of experience working out problems during the close process that can potentially kill the deal.

This is an area where there is no substitute for experience. The longer a mortgage broker has been involved in the business and the more different types of mortgage applications they’ve dealt with, the more prepared they will be for anything that can happen.

When problems do arise, they seem to almost come out of the blue and rarely provide you with sufficient time to get the issue or issues resolved before time runs on a purchasing opportunity or other mortgage financing requirement that is time sensitive.

Getting everything properly lined up before the closing date is both art and science and cannot be underestimated in importance when looking to get a new mortgage in place.

If you have a Toronto Mortgage Closing that has gone off the rails or if you’re starting the mortgage process and want to best avoid any problems down the road, I suggest that you give me a call and we’ll work together to make the process as smooth and painless as possible.

Click Here To Speak With Toronto Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh

Mortgage Broker Experience Can Be Very Beneficial

“When It Comes To Working With a Mortgage Broker, There Is No Substitute For Experience”

First of all, I fully support people utilizing the services of a mortgage broker if they are looking for either residential or commercial mortgage financing.  For most people purchasing a home, the mortgage lender they end up working with will pay for the services of the mortgage broker providing a great service at no cost.

Mortgage brokers are all licensed and have to commit to ongoing professional development to maintain their ability to practice.

And while all mortgage brokers are trained to help you, experience does make a difference, especially when you’re looking for a specific type of mortgage product that a mortgage broker works with regularly.

Just like any other type of business, industry relationships are important and be used to your advantage.  While all brokers may have access to the same lender groups, the relationships that are built with the people that work there are developed by individuals, not necessarily by the collective.

This doesn’t mean that an experienced mortgage broker can pull favors or get you a deal that is not on the market, but it can mean that you get talking to decision makers quicker and if you have a deal that’s on the fringe of a mortgage lender’s requirements, a well established relationship and some added expertise may be able to get your deal out of the decline pile and into the approval pile.

Personally, there are individuals I can call up at a lenders office to a discuss a deal with in a matter of minutes can get an indication of interest from, that would be much less likely from someone who did not have the same relationship in place or the time and experience.  When I think about my earlier days when I was first starting out and compare that to today, there is no comparison with respect to my ability to get into direct contact with the right people in the right lending organizations.

Like most anything else in life, the more experience you can bring to the table, the better the results you can expect.  So if you need to secure a residential or commercial mortgage, I recommend that you give me a call so I can quickly assess your situation and requirements and provide relevant mortgage financing options that meet your requirements.

Click Here To Speak To Toronto Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh

Mortgage Product Confusion

“Trying To Figure Out What Residential Mortgage Program Is Best For You Can Be Extremely Confusing”

The Canadian mortgage market has evolved considerably over the last decade with more information more readily available to consumers and more mortgage programs and features to try and attract your business.

Because mortgage decisions tend to be the largest individual financing decisions that most people make, there can (and should) be a great deal more scrutiny that goes into the comparison process from one mortgage option to the next.

Add to more competition and more choice is the fact that the average person tends to have more of an opinion on mortgage products, mortgage companies, and mortgage strategies. So when you’re actively seeking a mortgage for real estate purchase, construction, renewal, or consolidation, there is no shortage of information and points of view to go around, whether you want it all or not.

So, yes more information is good as everyone wants to make an informed decision in order to create the most benefit for themselves and their families.

But at the same time, you still need to wade through all the information, make sense of it, and still make a good decision.

And while many of the major banks have gotten more aggressive promoting their own mortgage products and services, the goal of much of this information overload is to try and capture your collective attention so whatever decision you choose will stay within in the confines of a major lender’s marketing funnel.

For the average person who perhaps only goes through a residential mortgage process once every 3 to 5 years, the information assimilation process can be very difficult to understand.

The best solution in my opinion is to select an experienced mortgage broker that you trust, who you believe will will work in your best interest and will invest the time necessary to answer all your questions, look at all the relevant options in the market that pertain to your situation, and help you make the best decision possible.

This has become a process where a third party guide can provide considerable value in terms of both time and money savings as well as stress reduction.

If you’re in need of a residential mortgage product, or just planning ahead, please give me a call so we can discuss your requirements, get your questions answered, and go over the most relevant mortgage financing options together.

Click Here To Speak With Toronto Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh

Selecting Mortgage Broker in Mississauga

“Best Practices For Selecting a Mississauga Mortgage Broker”

First of all, if you’re looking for a mortgage product for a new real estate purchase or refinance, it makes a great deal of sense to utilize the services of a mortgage broker.

For most residential mortgage programs, the lender is going to pay the broker for any fees resulting from placing a mortgage, so you get the benefit of their expertise without incurring any cost.

This allows you the ability to shop the market and get your application in front of mortgage lender you may not otherwise be aware of. Even if your bias is towards your existing bank or lending institution, the advantage of working through a mortgage broker is that you can quickly compare what the overall market has to offer compared to the programs from one source.

As much as your existing bank or mortgage company is always going to want to keep you, the reality is that they may not have the best offer at a given point of time which can cost you money in the long run.

So back to selecting a Mississauga mortgage broker, assuming you’re from the Mississauga area.

The first thing to consider is the type of mortgage product you’re looking for. Is it a residential mortgage, commercial mortgage, construction loan, etc. While all mortgage brokers are licensed to provide all these different types of mortgage products, not all mortgage brokers and mortgage agents are automatically going to have a focus or experience with the type of mortgage you require.

The second thing to consider is the category of mortgage that you’re likely going to qualify for. If you’re credit is significantly strained, or you need to arrange a fast mortgage closing, then a private mortgage may be the best fit for your needs. Not all mortgage brokers will have access to private lenders and even many of the ones that do may still not be able to either meet your requirements or provide the best available deal.

The third consideration is your comfort level with any particular individual. While the first two criteria are always going to be important, don’t over look the importance of working with someone that you trust and feel confident in their approach and abilities. Other than just listening to you’re own instincts, you can also ask for references and follow up with past customers to get a first hand opinion of what others found when working with a given individual.

If you are looking for mortgage assistance in the Mississauga area, I recommend you give me a call so I can quickly assess your requirements and provide relevant mortgage options that we can go over together. If I can’t help you, I’ll tell you right away so that you don’t waste any time as well.

Click Here To Speak With Mississauga Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh

Toronto Mortgage Broker – Joe Walsh

“If You’re In Need of a Real Estate Mortgage in Toronto, Should You Be Working With a Toronto Mortgage Broker?”

First of all, I’m totally biased when it comes to working with a mortgage broker or not. I believe in our profession and the value we provide our customers. And if you look at the numbers, 25% of all mortgage in Canada are placed through mortgage brokers as well as 44% of first time mortgages.

I would also say that all mortgage brokers are not created equal. While all mortgage brokers and mortgage agents are qualified to conduct their craft, there are varying levels of experience and specialization that can make a difference with different application scenarios.

For instance, there are mortgage brokers that only focus on residential bank or institutional mortgages. It only makes sense that these individuals are going to have a harder time helping you locate and secure a complex construction financing requirement if its something they’ve never worked on.

Even within a residential or commercial focus, there can be a big difference between bank mortgage, B lenders, and private mortgage lender requirements. Some brokers will have experience in all three layers of the market, some will not have very much. Some will have a stronger support network to assist with deals and some will not.

So one of the key things to take into account when considering different Toronto mortgage brokers is their experience related to the type of real estate mortgage you require. How do you determine this? Go through your scenario with a mortgage broker you’re interested in working with and ask about their related experience in what you’re trying to accomplish, references they can provide, the process they will follow. If you don’t feel comfortable with the answers you’re getting then you’re probably better off interviewing more brokers.

In my experience, most of a borrower’s selection process is their comfort level with any given broker which only makes sense indicating that you should not ignore your instincts before making a selection.

Personally, I take great pride in what I do and I view each client as a partner in the completion of the mortgage application process. I need their help to get the job done properly and I want them to be satisfied with the final result.

If you are looking for a Toronto mortgage broker for a residential, commercial, or construction mortgage requirements, I suggest you give me a call so we can discuss your requirements and see if it makes sense to work together locating and securing a mortgage that will meet your needs.

Click Here To Speak To Toronto Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh

Toronto Private Mortgage Broker

“Toronto Private Mortgage Brokers Will Provide You With Direct Access to Private Mortgage Lenders in Toronto and Other Parts of The GTA”

If you’re trying to locate and secure a private mortgage in Toronto or in some other part of the Greater Toronto Area, then the best approach you can take is to select a Toronto private mortgage broker to work with.

A private mortgage broker has the same qualifications as any other licensed mortgage broker. The key difference is that they have developed relationships with private mortgage lenders in the local area for different real estate property mortgage applications.

Most mortgage brokers only work with bank or institutional mortgage sources and if they do have access to a private lender, it may only be one individual which will limit the scope of what they can help you with.

Mortgage brokers that spend time to develop private lending sources will have greater access to this market and will be able to provide you with options much quicker than through a broker that doesn’t have a private money focus.

The private mortgage broker route is also important for another couple of reasons.

First, it can be hard to locate a relevant source of private mortgage financing without a knowledgeable broker as many private lenders only work through broker networks.

Second, by working through a mortgage broker that has an existing relationship with a private lender, its more likely that you’re going to be dealing with a reputable lending source versus an individual lender that may be difficult to work with.

Third, private mortgage rates can vary from deal to deal and its more likely you’re going to get closer to the best available deal at a given point of time working through a private mortgage broker that knows the market versus doing it yourself or working with a broker that does not have a focus placing this type of mortgage.

Fourth, while most private mortgages are only for one year, if you have a need for a longer period of time, there are privates that will consider multiple year terms, but they can be hard to find, and harder to find still without the right Toronto private mortgage broker working with you.

Click Here To Speak To Toronto Private Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh.

With Mortgage Brokers, Speed Comes With Experience

“Your Choice of Mortgage Broker Can Make All The Difference In Getting Your Mortgage Financing Arranged Quickly

Like anything else in life, experience does account for something and that’s no different when it comes to the mortgage broker business, especially these days.

Perhaps in a more settled market, it’s more possible to collect the basic application information for a mortgage financing request, pump it into the system to a number of lenders, and get back a result that’s acceptable to the borrower.

Perhaps.

But now more than ever with the new rules that have come into place on mortgage insurance and an overall tightening down on mortgage commitment policies and procedures by lenders, more finesse and knowledge tend to be required to get deals done and get them done in the time required.

More established brokers on average will have more established relationships with mortgage underwriters. So when there are concerns or questions, a direct conversation can keep a deal a live versus a quick no.

There is also a greater demand on brokers to keep up with the trends among lenders in terms of what they are approving and what they are staying away from and how the information needs to best be presented and packaged for the best results.

This can only come with time in the saddle, doing deals for several years. And speed is not necessarily how fast you move. Its more about making sure that any one particular deal is being presented to the most relevant lender with the best potential positioning.

Obviously, for straight forward deals, this is not going to be required in most cases. But most of the deals these days are not straight forward by definition and therefore require a certain amount of expertise to get the deal done in the time required.

The alternative of not working with someone with sufficient experience is no approval in the time you have to work with and deal failure. And while all mortgage brokers and mortgage agents are fully qualified to provide mortgage placement services, they come with varying degrees of experience which can impact how things go in the current market place.

As a general rule, if you know you’re real estate deal or mortgage requirements are going to be somewhat or a lot challenging, then make sure you’re drawing on a greater level of experience when selecting a mortgage broker.

There is nothing worse than a failed deal or suboptimal deal that could have been avoided with a better approach to the market.

Click Here To Speak With Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh

Mortgage Broker Services Grow In Value

“With All The Changes Going On In The Capital Markets, Mortgage Broker Services Have Become More Important”

The last several months have seen a couple of mortgage interest rate increases, more increases expected, changes in mortgage insurance policies, HST on the way, and housing pricing uncertainty going forward.

As a mortgage broker, all of the above have kept me on my toes and reinforces the role mortgage brokers play for our clients. It seems that every application these days is a bit more challenging to get approved and the amount of discussion to go through all the issues related to a particular property and financial profile has also increased.

Lenders have also become more a bit more cautious as they too work through all the changes. Basically, this amount of change always slows down the works for everyone as a certain amount of efficiency is lost due to everyone in the system adapting to new policies, procedures, and so on.

For the average person trying to make sense of everything in order to make the best potential decision for their family or business, the process can be overwhelming, excessively time consuming, and potentially very frustrating.

When most mortgage broker services are paid by the lender, it makes a great deal of sense to get professional help when working through all this stuff. A bad assumption or missed information can cost you tens of thousands of dollars over time, so its really not worth taking the chance if you don’t have to.

I admit that I’m totally biased when it comes to the topic of using a mortgage broker, but when I see people clearly struggling with the mortgage financing process these days when they’re getting good quality assistance, I can only imagine what its like for those that try to figure things out on their own.

Banks have become more aggressive lately with their sales efforts to try and retain or attract your business. And while these door to door mortgage agents provide excellent service, they still can only provide you with one set of options which may or may not be the best for your particular situation and personal or business requirements.

As a mortgage broker, I have broad access to the Canadian mortgage market at large and I don’t have any biases or preferences with respect to lenders. My objective is to find the best solution to your mortgage requirements, regardless of who the final lender may be.

Click Here To Speak With Mortgage Broker Joe Walsh

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