WHAT IS A MORTGAGE BROKER?
Mortgage brokers are independent, trained professionals licensed to represent and provide you with the best advice for your mortgage needs.
A mortgage broker’s primary expertise is locating funding for mortgage financing. They know where the best rates can be found. What’s more, they have the knowledge and experience required to present a proposal for financing to a lender in the best way possible ensuring optimal results.
WHY DEAL WITH A MORTGAGE BROKER?
Mortgage brokers represent you, the customer, not the lender. Because they are not employees of a lending institution, brokers are not limited in the product they can offer you. Brokers seek out the best lender package to suit your specific situation, whether it’s with a Chartered Bank, Trust or Insurance Company, or even from Private Funds.
There is a wide assortment of options and features available to homebuyers today. Shopping around takes a lot of time and effort. The mortgage application process in today’s very competitive marketplace intimidates many Canadian homebuyers. It pays to work with a mortgage professional that will represent you and ensure the mortgage you get is the one best suited to your needs.
Choosing the wrong mortgage can cost you thousands of extra dollars. Mortgage brokers are trained professionals who can help you save thousands by choosing the right mortgage.
OTHER THAN RATES, WHY SHOULD I USE A MORTGAGE BROKER?
Mortgage brokers negotiate for a living and understand the mortgage market in fine detail. The interest rate alone makes up a very small part of the total contract and there are many other considerations to be mindful of when organizing your mortgage. A broker has the expertise to know which lender to place your mortgage with and how to ensure your terms and conditions are optimal. It has been said that in Canada there are two types of buyers. Educated buyers and victims. Don’t be a victim; deal with a mortgage professional and get the right advice up front!
HOW DO MORTGAGE BROKERS FIND SUPERIOR RATES?
Mortgage brokers are in daily contact with lenders and know which applicants and property types attract favourable interest rates from one institution, but higher rates at another. Some lending institutions, in fact, will only accept mortgage submissions from mortgage brokers directly.
Interest rates and lender appetites for certain types of loans can change daily depending on several economic factors. The size of an institution’s portfolio in a particular type of mortgage for example can change their willingness to lower rates and attract new business. Your mortgage broker keeps current and knows which lender to approach first. As a result, mortgage rates obtained by brokers are the best available at the time of placement.
WHY SHOULD I GO TO A MORTGAGE BROKER FIRST?
A professional presentation to a lender on the first application will get the best response and save you valuable time and money. Secondary applications with previous credit bureau inquiries may be more costly.
Often the success of obtaining a mortgage approval depends on the way a proposal is presented and to whom it is sent. Your mortgage broker represents you and is trained to present your mortgage proposal in the best possible light. A carpenter could likely fix your teeth but wouldn’t you rather have a dentist? The same is true of mortgage financing. There are people who may get the job done, but a mortgage broker will take the time and care to make sure it is done right.
DO BROKERS ONLY DO RESIDENTIAL MORTGAGES?
Brokers can place all types of loans. This includes small loans registered on residential property to million dollar commercial loans registered on commercial property. Brokers deal with business loans, leasing loans, even collateral or vehicle loans. Give your broker a call to discuss your plans as there may be many options available to you.
HOW DO BROKERS GET BETTER DEALS THAN MANY BANKS?
The lenders who work with mortgage brokers include traditional sources such as chartered banks, trust companies, corporate funds and private pension funds.
Brokers and banks actually work together and the broker channel can be a very useful source for banks to lend their money. In addition, banks understand that brokers are shopping the entire market and know where to get the best rates. As a result, banks often allow brokers to lend their money at a lower rate than the bank will offer directly. Lending high volumes of money at lower rates is still very profitable for the banks.
For best results always call your Broker first.
CAN I STILL GO THROUGH MY BANK WITH MY BROKER?
Yes, letting a mortgage broker represent you to your own financial institution can often result in a better rate than you could get on your own.