While many women may be putting off marriage, they’re certainly not waiting around for Mr Right before taking the plunge into homeownership. It’s becoming increasingly apparent that a greater number of women are now taking the reigns when it comes to home purchases. There’s a growing trend among single women – and, more precisely, professional single women – who are becoming independent homeowners.

 It’s believed that around 20% of homebuyers in North America are single women based on a 2011 report released by the US National Association of Realtors. Harvard University’s Joint Center for Housing Studies also released a report that said single women are buying in record numbers.

 There’s no equivalent data for Canada, but an abundance of anecdotal information has led to the creation of shows like HGTV’s Buy Herself, which follows single women making their first real estate purchases.

Women are looking for ways to become financially independent, and investing in real estate and building equity for themselves are ways to invest in their future – building financial security.

 Women are taking advantage of historically low interest rates and recognizing home ownership is often more affordable than renting.  There has never been a better time for women to make the decision to get into the real estate market to find the perfect place to call home

 Seeking expert advice

 One of the amazing things about women looking to invest in real estate is that they’re getting more advice before they make the decision to enter the market. They’re seeking out mortgage experts and real estate agents, and building a plan for the perfect entry into the market. They’re making lists of areas in which they’re interested in purchasing, itemizing amenities they would need in their ideal neighbourhoods, ensuring they have all the facts around closing costs and fees associated with making the purchase, and securing a mortgage.

 Buying a home is likely one of the largest purchases you’ll ever make in your lifetime, and can feel overwhelming. That’s why working with a professional Mortgage Agent, Real Estate Agent, and Home Inspector is essential. You’ll be working with these professionals closely – possibly for months – so interactions should feel comfortable, and they should be knowledgeable and responsive even to the smallest question.

 The more prepared you are, the smoother the experience will be so do a little research on your own over the Internet to get a good idea of what types of properties and areas are of interest to you. Make a list of questions to ask your Mortgage Agent or Realtor – and keep it on hand so you can add to it as more questions arise.

Source:  Kamloops Daily News

While home sales are flat so far in 2012 and expected to stay that way for the remainder of the year, CMHC forecasts MLS sales will see double-digit increases next year.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. released its fourth-quarter housing outlook report Monday.

About 1,360 homes sold to the end of September, the same number as the first nine months of 2011. That stable trend is expected to continue through the rest of the year.

But the agency expects resales to jump by 11.8 per cent in 2013 based on expected economic and job gains — the strongest projected increase of major B.C. markets.

Average home prices are up about three per cent over the same period last year. That compares to the Vancouver market, where MLS prices are down seven per cent on average.

CMHC also expects new home construction in Kamloops to jump eight per cent in 2013, primarily from single-family homes.

DECODING THE MORTGAGE MARKET

Don’t fear the small mortgage lender

ROBERT MCLISTER

Special to The Globe and Mail

Published Friday, Aug. 03 2012, 7:00 PM EDT

Last updated Tuesday, Aug. 07 2012, 6:43 AM EDT

 Mortgage lenders come in all sizes, ranging from RBC – the biggest in the country – to tiny wholesale lenders and credit unions.

When it comes to entrusting a company with your biggest debt, odds are, name recognition matters to you. Consciously or subconsciously, people gravitate to well-known lenders partly because there’s a feeling of safety in “big.”

Even when a smaller lender has tantalizing rates and the best terms, homeowners sometimes tend to avoid it if they don’t know the name. An oft-cited reason for that is fear that the lender will go out of business. And that is certainly not unprecedented.

If we’re talking about “prime” lenders – i.e., those catering to more creditworthy customers – the list of extinct lenders includes companies like Abode Mortgage, Citizens Bank, Dundee Bank, Maple Trust and ResMor Trust. Mind you, most of these lenders were purchased by others.

Just recently, we buried another lender. FirstLine, once one of the biggest mortgage companies in the country, closed its doors Tuesday after 25 years in business.

People worry about lenders closing down for one main reason: they’re scared the lender will force them to repay their mortgage early. In reality, however, that rarely happens with prime lenders.

The bigger risk has been with subprime lenders. In fact, some subprime borrowers have even lost their homes in cases where they couldn’t refinance elsewhere after their lender shut down.

But if you’re a qualified borrower with provable income, do you really need to be worried if your lender goes out of business?

“Not at all,” says Boris Bozic, president and chief executive officer at Merix Financial.

“I always find it fascinating that people are concerned about smaller lenders,” he adds. “We’re not deposit takers. We’re giving money, not taking money. The risk is all ours.”

Many second- and third-tier lenders get their funding from large financial institutions and that funding is fairly stable, Mr. Bozic says.

“Even if a company were to run into financial difficulties, the vast majority of the time there are backup servicers in place.” This sort of contingency planning is almost always required by the parties funding a lender’s mortgages.

If a lender were to close, Mr. Bozic says another financial institution would simply take over the mortgage.

When a lender sells your mortgage to another party, you just keep making the same payments like nothing happened – albeit to a different company, in some cases. The new lender is generally required to honour the terms of your old mortgage contract, Mr. Bozic says.

The one thing that will change is the renewal offer you receive at maturity. Generally, the new owner of your mortgage will be the one making your renewal offer. That could be good or bad depending on how competitive the new lender is. But smart consumers always shop their lender’s renewal offer anyway, so this isn’t a major issue.

Overall, the probability of a lender disappearing is low. On its own, it’s not enough reason to avoid a less prominent company.

That’s especially true when the lender has the best deal in the market – which is the case with many smaller lenders today. If you can find a 0.10 percentage point lower rate, you’ll save roughly $1,200 over 60 months on a standard $250,000 mortgage.

If you’re interested in getting the best rate possible, you need to be open to saving money with a smaller mortgage company. Just be sure to get independent advice so you can sidestep the ones with onerous contract restrictions. Examples of those include fully closed terms, costly penalty calculations, porting restrictions, refinance limitations, and so on. Some lenders have rather unpleasant fine print, but that’s true for micro and mega lenders alike.

There are certainly reasons to choose a major bank or large credit union for your mortgage, including branch accessibility, integrating your mortgage with your banking or credit line, and access to other financial products. But it’s rarely necessary to shun lesser-known lenders for fear they’ll close and leave you stranded.

Bank of Canada likely to hold interest rates until July 2013: BMO

The Canadian Press  Jul 3, 2012 – 3:29 PM ET | Last Updated: Jul 3, 2012 3:44 PM ET

TORONTO — The Bank of Montreal predicted Tuesday that the Bank of Canada will keep interests rates lower for longer than it expected.

Economists at the bank now believe the central bank will not raise its key rate until July 2013, six months later than their earlier prediction of January 2013.

Senior economist Michael Gregory said the change stems from the easing policy of the U.S. Federal Reserve, a downgraded Canadian economic outlook and tightened mortgage rules.

The changes, which include a cut to the maximum amortization period for government insured mortgages cut to 25 years from 30, should stem some fears around growing household debt that would otherwise push the Bank of Canada to increase rates sooner.

“The tightening of the government’s mortgage insurance rules does serve to act like higher interest rates specifically for that sector,” Gregory said. “So that takes some of the urgency away from the Bank of Canada to adjust rates any time soon.”

The Bank of Canada has kept its key interest rate at one per cent since September 2010.

The rate affects the prime lending rates at Canada’s major banks and in turn influences all kinds of interest rates including those charged to variable rate mortgages and lines of credit.

Gregory said he expects that the Bank of Canada will change its projections for economic growth when it releases its new monetary policy report on July 18.

“I suspect it will show softer growth in Canada, partly because of global factors and in part because of what’s going on in the U.S,” said Gregory.

BILL CURRY, GRANT ROBERTSON and TARA PERKINS

OTTAWA AND TORONTO — The Globe and Mail

The federal government is moving again to tighten the rules on mortgage lending in Canada amid growing concerns that the housing market is overheated and household debt levels are climbing to perilous levels.

The country’s biggest banks were caught off guard on Wednesday night as the Department of Finance prepared to clamp down on mortgages by reducing the maximum amortization for a government-insured mortgage to 25 years from 30.

Ottawa will also limit the amount of equity that can be borrowed against a home to 80 per cent of the property’s value, down from 85 per cent.

The moves are designed to cool the housing market and limit the record levels of personal debt Canadians have amassed in recent years. Figures from Statistics Canada show the average ratio of debt-to-disposable income climbed to 152 per cent, up from 150.6 per cent at the end of 2011. A rise in interest rates or further job losses could put some households at financial risk, endangering any economic recovery.

The Bank of Canada is expected to keep interest rates low for some time because the economy shows little sign of a strong recovery, so tightening mortgage rules is one way to ensure Canadians don’t get in over their heads during a prolonged period of ultra-low interest rates.

Reducing the maximum amortization on government-backed mortgages will eliminate the 30-year mortgage for most borrowers in Canada. The changes, which are expected to be unveiled at a news conference in Ottawa on Thursday morning, will translate into higher monthly payments, but result in the loan being paid off sooner.

Ottawa will announce two other changes, according to a source. It will no longer allow high-ratio mortgages over $1-million, and it will cap the gross debt service (which looks at a consumer’s total debt payments as a percentage of their income) at 39 per cent. While many banks tend not to allow mortgages over 40 per cent, there had been no official rule in place.

It is the fourth time in four years that Ottawa has moved to cool the housing market by tightening mortgage rules. In early 2011, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty reduced maximum insured amortizations to 30 years, and limited borrowing to 85 per cent of the property value.

CIBC economist Benjamin Tal described the changes as a “gentle push,” since the government didn’t make alterations to the minimum downpayment required on mortgages, which stands at 5 per cent.

“The fact that they didn’t change downpayments is a realization that doing so would probably be too severe given that the market is slowing down,” he said.

However, there remain concerns the changes could cause too abrupt a shift in the market. “All of these things might precipitate the housing market downturn that the government wants to avoid,” Jim Murphy, CEO of the Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals, said in an interview.

The Bank of Canada sounded the alarm on growing household debt on Wednesday, taking aim in particular at the growing tendency of Canadians to take out lines of credit using home equity.

While the Bank has repeatedly warned on household debt levels in the past, on Wednesday it provided more detail about the type of debt Canadians are taking on, including its concerns about the rapid growth of so-called HELOC’s (home equity lines of credit).

The issue, as with any debt, is if these innovations or this access to debt is taken too far

“Like any financial innovation, home equity lines of credit have both positives and negatives associated with them,” Bank of Governor Mark Carney said during a press conference in Ottawa. “The issue, as with any debt, is if these innovations or this access to debt is taken too far.”

He pointed to the concerns raised by the country’s banking regulator, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, which said earlier this year that some lenders were too lenient in providing home equity loans.

Mr. Carney’s comments build upon the release of the Bank of Canada’s Monetary Policy Report on Wednesday, a quarterly economic overview compiled by the central bank. The report highlights the explosive growth of HELOC’s and mortgage refinancings in the past decade, which have surged to $64-billion as of 2010 from $8-billion in 2001.

Canadians appear to be using such loans for two primary reasons, the Bank said. They are either paying down other higher interest loans, such as credit card debt, or using the money for everyday spending.

http://business.financialpost.com/2012/04/18/bank-of-canada-takes-aim-at-home-equity-lines-of-credit/

A new report from Equifax is pointing a finger in the same direction as brokers, arguing non-mortgage debt as the real threat to consumer solvency.

“It is not surprising to see consumer credit continue to increase given the significantly improved levels of consumer delinquencies and bankruptcies witnessed in the last year, coupled with record-low consumer borrowing rates,” said Nadim Abdo, VP of consulting and Analysis for the credit bureau.

While Credit card debt continued its fall during the first quarter of 2012, decreasing by 2.1 per cent from the same period last year, The Equifax Report reveals total consumer indebtedness — excluding mortgage debt – actually increased by 3.4 per cent compared to the time last year.

New loans opened in Q1 2012 were nearly 1 per cent higher than they were a year earlier. And the largest increase in outstanding balances was in auto finance loans and lease agreements, which grew by 10 per cent over the Q1 period for 2011.

Those highlights back up the concerns of mortgage professionals calling on banking regulators to shift their focus away from tightening mortgage lending rules and toward strengthening the underwriting on unsecured debt.

The argument may be loss on the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Services as it prepares to bring in a slew of new, more rigid guidelines for banks and other mortgage providers.

Of immediate concern to brokers is its intention to increase the equity requirements for homeowners seeking HELOC – something that could remove that option for Canadians in desperate need of debt consolidation.

“This guideline change (moving the equity minimum from 20 per cent to 35 per cent) would create an artificial crisis by removing the recourse some homeowners now have to consolidating unsecured, high-interest debt into secured, low-interest debt,” said Ad Lakhanpal, an Oakville-based broker with Mortgage Alliance. “Lenders are already asking borrowers questions about what they intend to use HELOC funds for to ensure it’s not being abused.”

The comments jive with those of other brokers reacting to proposed guideline changes now being floated by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Services. The watchdog wants to lower the maximum loan-to-value of uninsured home equity lines of credit to 65 percent from 80 percent.

“The federal government already instituted tougher guidelines for qualifying for HELOCs and lenders already use stricter lending guidelines, including net worth tests, property valuation tests, and credit scoring to ensure that HELOC borrowers are the best of the best,” Gord McCallum, owner of First Foundation Residential Mortgages, told MortgageBrokerNews.ca.

Mortgage rates have nowhere to go but up

Garry Marr Mar 27, 2012 – 7:22 PM ET | Last Updated: Mar 27, 2012 7:33 PM ET

The logic is pretty simple. You hit rock bottom and there is no where else to go but up.

Mortgage rates on terms of five years and 10 years have never been this low. You can go back 50 years and not find a rate of 2.99% from one of the major banks for a fixed-rate product for five years. The 10-year, an almost unheard of length for most Canadians to commit to, has touched down at below 4%.

Even sticking it out with a variable-rate product linked to the prime lending rate still looks pretty good with most major financial institutions offering some type of discount off their 3% floating rate.

Already there are signs rates could be on the increase. The bond market — which mortgage rates are based on — has been rising fast and the big banks say their most recent specials will come to an end this week. But even with a 50 basis point increase, a five-year fixed closed mortgage of 3.5% is almost unheard of historically.

“Everybody is looking at the bottom here and thinking, ‘When are rates going to go up?’” says Kelvin Mangaroo, president of RateSupermarket.ca which produces a monthly forecast from leaders in the mortgage industry.

Even among the experts, few foresaw this price war in the mortgage sector. “With the big banks getting very aggressive again, it took a lot of people by surprise,” said Mr. Mangaroo. “I think people were thinking the status quo would hold for a while.”

He says the last Bank of Canada announcement about the economy had people thinking at some point the overnight lending rate, which impacts the prime lending rate, would go up, but not this year.

“Now that people are thinking of early 2013, that has people talking but really that is just so far out says Mr. Mangaroo. “It’s really just an abstract concept at this point.”

Craig Alexander, chief economist with Toronto-Dominion Bank, says he can understand how there might be some fatigue from consumers hearing about rising rates.

“Unfortunately, we have been saying for years ‘that’s it, rates can’t go any lower than they are today’ and then they are [lower] 12 months later,” Mr. Alexander says.

But this time out, he says, it almost seems impossible that rates on a five-year closed mortgage could go lower than the current 3%. “Short of the Canadian economy going into a recession and causing the Bank of Canada to cut rates back to their all-time low, there really isn’t an environment that would lead to significantly lower mortgage rates,” Mr. Alexander says. “The downside here is extraordinarily limited.”

The real risk for the consumer might be not locking in right now. While no one is expecting the overnight rate to go up anytime soon — discounts off the prime lending rate might even improve if the economic uncertainty calms in some parts of the world — the 50-year-low rates today could become hard to find.

“If the economic forecasters are wrong about the outlook for growth and things turn out better than anticipated, then bond yield will rise, we’ll have a steeper yield curve and higher fixed mortgage rates,” Mr. Alexander says. “You won’t be able to get what is offered today in 12 months time. They could go up half a percentage point or higher.”

In the interim, Gregory Klump, chief economist with Canadian Real Estate Association, says in terms of profitability, there is room for the banks to go lower on rates, but margins for the banks are so thin he doesn’t expect it happen.

“We are not out of the woods yet in terms of a clear picture that growth is going to strengthen,” says Mr. Klump about the catalyst that could drive up bond rates, which would impact mortgage rates. “My own view is growth may well weaken.”

He predicts that any rise in rates will happen slowly, which the housing market would more easily absorb. “I do not expect it,” Mr. Klump says about the type of interest rate shock that could send housing sales tumbling.

Author Garth Turner, a noted pessimist on the fortunes of housing these days, thinks those who want to be in the market for a house should probably be grabbing on to long-term products.

He says the banks know the housing market is already shrinking and are scrambling for a larger share of the mortgage market, something that also allows them to cross-sell other products like RRSPs to consumers.

“The writing is already on the wall, prices will be declining,” Mr. Turner says. “The Bank of Canada will be raising rates.”

A Bank of Canada hike will make variable rates rise fast, and he agrees the present day rates could look very good in a few years. “If you want to be a homeowner, it is an appealing product. Three or fours years from now, these rates could look absurd. I have no problem with being in real estate as long as it’s not the bulk of your net worth. If you are getting into real estate now though and leveraging up, you are going to be unhappy about it,” says Mr. Turner, adding the raising rate environment will hurt sales and prices will follow quickly.

Don Lawby, chief executive of Century 21, says the rate wars going on right now combined with the unusually warm winter have already boosted housing sales, which could leave little demand left for the spring market.

“Interest rates are low and they probably can’t go any lower than they are,” says Mr. Lawby, who thinks there is not much room for housing prices to go higher. “I looked around and say if the local economy stays good, the market can stay good. But these low rates are very key.”

1. If I have mortgage default insurance do I also need mortgage life insurance?

• Yes. Mortgage life insurance is a life insurance policy on a homeowner, which will allow your family or dependents to pay off the mortgage on the home should something tragic happen to you. Mortgage default insurance is something lenders require you to purchase to cover their own assets if you have less than a 20% down payment. Mortgage life insurance is meant to protect the family of a homeowner and not the mortgage lender itself.

2. What steps can I take to maximize my mortgage payments and own my home sooner?

• There are many ways to pay down your mortgage sooner that could save you thousands of dollars in interest payments throughout the term of your mortgage. Most mortgage products, for instance, include prepayment privileges that enable you to pay up to 20% of the principal (the true value of your mortgage minus the interest payments) per calendar year. This will also help reduce your amortization period (the length of your mortgage). Another way to reduce the time it takes to pay off your mortgage involves changing the way you make your payments by opting for accelerated bi-weekly mortgage payments. Not to be confused with semi-monthly mortgage payments (24 payments per year), accelerated bi-weekly mortgage payments (26 payments per year) will not only pay your mortgage off quicker, but it’s guaranteed to save you a significant amount of money over the term of your mortgage. With accelerated bi-weekly mortgage payments, you’re making one additional monthly payment per year. In addition to increased payment options, most lenders offer the opportunity to make lump-sum payments on your mortgage (as much as 20% of the original borrowed amount each year). Please note, however, that some lenders will only let you make these lump-sum payments on the anniversary date of your mortgage while others will allow you to spread out the lump-sum payments to the maximum allowable yearly amount.

3. Can I make lump-sum or other prepayments on my mortgage, or will I be penalized?

• Most lenders enable lump-sum payments and increased mortgage payments to a maximum amount per year. But, since each lender and product is different, it’s important to check stipulations on prepayments prior to signing your mortgage papers. Most “no frills” mortgage products offering the lowest rates often do not allow for prepayments

 4. How do I ensure my credit score enables me to qualify for the best possible rate?

• There are several things you can do to ensure your credit remains in good standing. Following are five steps you can follow: 1) Pay down credit cards. The number one way to increase your credit score is to pay down your credit cards so they’re below 70% of your limits. Revolving credit like credit cards seems to have a more significant impact on credit scores than car loans, lines of credit, and so on. 2) Limit the use of credit cards. Racking up a large amount and then paying it off in monthly instalments can hurt your credit score. If there’s a balance at the end of the month, this affects your score – credit formulas don’t take into account the fact that you may have paid the balance off the next month. 3) Check credit limits. If your lender is slower at reporting monthly transactions, this can have a significant impact on how other lenders view your file. Ensure everything’s up to date as old bills that have been paid can come back to haunt you. Some financial institutions don’t even report your maximum limits. As such, the credit bureau is left to only use the balance that’s on hand. The problem is, if you consistently charge the same amount each month – say $1,000 to $1,500 – it may appear to the credit-scoring agencies that you’re regularly maxing out your cards. The best bet is to pay your balances down or off before your statement periods close. 4) Keep old cards. Older credit is better credit. If you stop using older credit cards, the issuers may stop updating your accounts. As such, the cards can lose their weight in the credit formula and, therefore, may not be as valuable – even though you have had the cards for a long time. Use these cards periodically and then pay them off. 5) Don’t let mistakes build up. Always dispute any mistakes or situations that may harm your score. If, for instance, a cell phone bill is incorrect and the company will not amend it, you can dispute this by making the credit bureau aware of the situation.

 5. What amortization will work best for me?

• While the lending industry’s benchmark amortization period is 25 years, and this is the standard that is used by lenders when discussing mortgage offers, and usually the basis for mortgage calculators and payment tables, shorter or longer timeframes are available – to a maximum of 30 years. The main reason to opt for a shorter amortization period is that you’ll become mortgage-free sooner. And since you’re agreeing to pay off your mortgage in a shorter period of time, the interest you pay over the life of the mortgage is, therefore, greatly reduced. A shorter amortization also affords you the luxury of building up equity in your home sooner. Equity is the difference between any outstanding mortgage on your home and its market value. While it pays to opt for a shorter amortization period, other considerations must be made before selecting your amortization. Because you’re reducing the actual number of mortgage payments you make to pay off your mortgage, your regular payments will be higher. So if your income is irregular because you’re paid commission or if you’re buying a home for the first time and will be carrying a large mortgage, a shorter amortization period that increases your regular payment amount and ties up your cash flow may not be the best option for you.

 6. What mortgage term is best for me?

• Selecting the mortgage term that’s right for you can be a challenging proposition for even the savviest of homebuyers, as terms typically range from six months up to 10 years. The first consideration when comparing various mortgage terms is to understand that a longer term generally means a higher corresponding interest rate. And, a shorter term generally means a lower corresponding interest rate. While this generalization may lead you to believe that a shorter term is always the preferred option, this isn’t always the case. Sometimes there are other factors – either in the financial markets or in your own life – that you’ll also have to take into consideration when selecting the length of your mortgage term. If paying your mortgage each month places you close to the financial edge of your comfort zone, you may want to opt for a longer mortgage term, such as five or 10 years, so that you can ensure that you’ll be able to afford your mortgage payments should interest rates increase. By the end of a five- or 10-year mortgage term, most buyers are in a better financial situation, have a lower outstanding principal balance and, should interest rates have risen throughout the course of your term, you’ll be able to afford higher mortgage payments.

 7. Is my mortgage portable?

• Fixed-rate products usually have a portability option. Lenders often use a “blended” system where your current mortgage rate stays the same on the mortgage amount ported over to the new property and the new balance is calculated using the current rate. With variable-rate mortgages, however, porting is usually not available. This means that when breaking your existing mortgage, a three-month interest penalty will be charged. This charge may or may not be reimbursed with your new mortgage. While porting typically ensures no penalty will be charged when you sell your existing property and buy a new one, it’s best to check with your mortgage broker for specific conditions. Some lenders allow you to port your mortgage, but your sale and purchase have to happen on the same day, while others offer extended periods.

 8. If I want to move before my mortgage term is up, what are my options?

• The answer to this question often depends on your specific lender and what type of mortgage you have. While fixed mortgages are often portable, variable are not. Some lenders allow you to port your mortgage, but your sale and purchase have to happen on the same day, while others offer extended periods. As long as there’s not too much time between the sale of your existing home and the purchase of the new home, as a rule of thumb most lenders will allow you to port the mortgage. In other words, you keep your existing mortgage and add the extra funds you need to buy the new house on top. The interest rate is a blend between your existing mortgage rate and the current rate at the time you require the extra money.

 9. What steps can I take to help ensure I don’t become a victim of title or mortgage fraud?

• The best way to prevent fraud is to be aware of how it’s committed. Following are some red flags for mortgage fraud: someone offers you money to use your name and credit information to obtain a mortgage; you’re encouraged to include false information on a mortgage application; you’re asked to leave signature lines or other important areas of your mortgage application blank; the seller or investment advisor discourages you from seeing or inspecting the property you will be purchasing; or the seller or developer rebates you money on closing, and you don’t disclose this to your lending institution. Sadly, the only red flag for title fraud occurs when your mortgage mysteriously goes into default and the lender begins foreclosure proceedings. Even worse, as the homeowner, you’re the one hurt by title fraud, rather than the lender, as is often the case with mortgage fraud. Unlike with mortgage fraud, during title fraud, you haven’t been approached or offered anything – this is a form of identity theft. Following are ways you can protect yourself from title fraud: always view the property you’re purchasing in person; check listings in the community where the property is located – compare features, size and location to establish if the asking price seems reasonable; make sure your representative is a licensed real estate agent; beware of a real estate agent or mortgage broker who has a financial interest in the transaction; ask for a copy of the land title or go to a registry office and request a historical title search; in the offer to purchase, include the option to have the property appraised by a designated or accredited appraiser; insist on a home inspection to guard against buying a home that has been cosmetically renovated or formerly used as a grow house or meth lab; ask to see receipts for recent renovations; when you make a deposit, ensure your money is protected by being held “in trust”; and consider the purchase of title insurance.

 10. How do I ensure I get the best mortgage product and rate upon renewal at the end of my term?

• The best way to ensure you receive the best mortgage product and rate at renewal is to enlist your mortgage broker once again to get the lenders competing for your business just like they did when you negotiated your last mortgage. A lot can change over a single mortgage term, and you can miss out on a lot of savings and options if you simply sign a renewal with your existing lender without consulting your mortgage broker.