Your mortgage may seem like a life sentence, but it doesn’t have to be. Through “side hustle,” you can achieve your  financial goals sooner like saving the down payment for your future home and paying down your mortgage in 10 years or less. I’m living proof of the power of side hustle. With side hustle, […]

Shopping for a mortgage is a lot more than simply finding the mortgage with the lowest rate. You wouldn’t shop for a condo by lowest list price only, ignoring other factors like maintenance fees, amenities and location. So don’t do it with your mortgage. The lowest mortgage rate may be the best mortgage, but there’s […]

The single biggest hurdle that keeps many renters from becoming homeowners is the down payment. With the average price of a detached home over $1 million in Toronto and Vancouver, it’s more important than ever to set yourself realistic home-buying expectations to avoid disappointment. You may not be able to afford a similar home as […]

Does it make better financial sense to rent or own your home? The high cost of real estate has many Canadians second guessing the dream of homeownership (I address the never-ending renting versus owning debate in my book, Burn Your Mortgage). You may be surprised to hear this coming from me, but for some people […]

Congrats, you’ve made the wise decision of buying a home. Purchasing real estate offers many benefits – forced savings, a tax-sheltered long-term investment and the ability to turn your home into an income source by renting it out, to name a few. With almost 70 percent of Canadians choosing to own their homes instead of […]

New Year’s, it’s a time of celebration and reflection. Celebration for all that we’ve accomplished in the year. Reflection for positive changes we could make to ensure that next year is even better. A popular annual tradition is to set New Year’s Resolutions. Popular resolutions include getting in better shape, quitting smoking and better managing […]

To help keep housing affordable in the province, the B.C. government is offering an interest-free loan to first-time homebuyers. The B.C. Home Owner Mortgage and Equity Partnership program will provide property virgins with a loan of up to $37,500. This amounts a maximum five percent of the purchase price or half the down payment. The […]

It’s hard to find a story on real estate these days that doesn’t bring up housing affordability. We’re constantly reminded that the average home in Toronto and Vancouver sells for over $1 million. If I was a first-time homebuyer, I’d feel like homeownership is impossible. The good news is that couldn’t be further from the […]

Another month, another housing market change. On November 30th another new set of mortgage rules came into effect. This follows the first set of mortgage rules changes introduced October 17. The second round of mortgage rules can be a little more complicated. To better understand them, it helps to first know how non-bank (monoline) lenders […]

How would you like to meet lots of interesting people and burn your mortgage years soon? Have you ever considered being an Airbnb host? In Vancouver, where the average price of a detached home goes for over $1 million, homeowners are increasingly turning to the sharing economy to help subsidize their mortgage. A recent study […]