Getting into the Housing Market

Tracy Head • July 28, 2023

Whether it is your first or subsequent venture into the housing market, it will likely look a bit different than it did even a few years ago.


Rising interest rates and changing qualification rules mean you may have to wait a bit longer, or rely on help from family.


This week I had a call with a young lady that is looking to buy a home in the Okanagan. She said she has been saving her down payment but feels like it will take a while to save enough. She also said she needed some help trying to figure out a game plan.


What I most appreciated about the call was her realistic approach. She said she felt it would be two to three years before she would be ready to move forward with a purchase and wanted to make sure she was doing everything she could to get ready.


The same day I sat in on a learning session about the First Home Savings Account (FHSA). Starting April 1, 2023 Canadians can contribute up to $8000.00 per year to a maximum of $40,000.00 to be used towards the down payment on a home. The contributions are tax deductible.


Who can open an FHSA? You must be:


How do you open an FHSA?


Contact any FHSA issuer. This can be a bank, credit union, or a trust or insurance company. They will be able to advise you as to what type of savings or investment products your money can be invested in. The funds in your FHSA can be combined with funds withdrawn from RRSPs under the Home Buyers Plan (HBP) to be used towards your down payment. The total between the two would be $75,000.00 or $150,000.00 per couple.


These may seem like pie-in-the-sky numbers, but even leveraging the plans for part of those funds may help significantly with the purchase of your home. Saving your down payment can be a real challenge, particularly if you are renting. The cost of living is

increasing and making it more difficult to tuck money away. When life happens it can be tempting to dip into your down payment savings.


A significant advantage to opening a FHSA or contributing to your RRSP is that it is not so easy to dip into your down payment savings. Perhaps an even more significant advantage is that your contributions are tax deductible which ultimately helps your savings plan.


Check out highlights of the First Home Savings Account here.

Tracy Head

Mortgage Broker

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Mortgage Crisis

By Tracy Head • September 5, 2025
A wise broker friend of mine once told me there is no such thing as a mortgage emergency. I think this may depend on whose perspective this is. I’ve thought about her statement over the years. I think what constitutes a mortgage emergency really depends which end of the transaction you are on. One situation I run into regularly is clients who have left dealing with their mortgage renewal until the bitter end. This doesn’t necessarily constitute a mortgage emergency if you are not planning to make any changes to your mortgage and you intend to stay with the same lender. However, if you are in a private mortgage that was intended to be a short-term solution leaving your renewal until the bitter end can put you in a precarious position. Not all private lenders automatically offer renewals. Some charge a significant fee to renew for another term. Some will renew but dramatically increase your rate. If your plan was to move to a traditional lender once your private mortgage comes up for renewal this process can take weeks and in some case months. Depending on your situation a refinance to pay out your private mortgage can be very challenging right now with stricter qualifying guidelines and higher interest rates. Sometimes clients are proactive with their plan to move from a private mortgage and we run into problems and additional document requests from the new lender or challenges like delays in getting appraisals done. Whether you are in a private mortgage or your mortgage is with a traditional lender I suggest you start looking into renewal options about six months ahead of your maturity (renewal) date. We can lock down an interest rate hold for you four months ahead of your maturity date but I love to have a conversation with my clients about six months prior so we can develop a plan as to how we will handle their upcoming renewal. Not all lenders offer an open mortgage at renewal so if you dawdle too long you may end up locked in with your current lender for a bit longer. If you have left your mortgage renewal until it is right around the corner don’t panic. Many lenders do offer an open mortgage so you can opt for this to buy yourself some time if you are planning to make any changes to your mortgage. Take some time to evaluate your options. Small tweaks can potentially make a significant difference to your bottom line so it is key to work with a professional that has your best interests at heart.

Early Renewal

By Tracy Head • August 27, 2025
Does an early renewal make sense? 2020 was a very busy year for home buying and mortgages. This means that 2025 is and has been a busy year for mortgage renewals as the majority of clients seemed to choose five year terms in 2020. I’ve had lots of conversations with my own and new clients about whether it makes sense to renew early. Each conversation is slightly different based on client needs and their individual circumstances. Most of the time I suggest that clients stay with their current lenders until their renewal dates because their current interest rates are anywhere between 1.6 per cent and 2.79 per cent. If you don’t need to make any immediate changes it makes the most financial sense to stay put until your term runs out. We can start the process of either switching or refinancing mortgages four months ahead of your renewal date and lock in a rate for you. As a generalization, when people ask about doing a straight switch (not adding any money to their mortgage) I will do a survey of what interest rates are available so they can go back to their lender to try to negotiate a great rate. Time and time again I’ve worked with clients on switches for them to cancel at the last minute as their current lender finally sharpens the pencil rather than lose the client. This is why I always try to help people negotiate with their current lender rather than put everyone through the work of having a new mortgage approved. If clients are wanting to add money to their mortgage to pay out consumer debt or pay for home renovations that changes things a bit. Some lenders are more aggressive with their refinance rates so it makes sense to make a move. Another situation has popped up this week that has had me crunching numbers for multiple clients. One of my favorite lenders came out with a quick-close rate special that is pretty hard to pass up. The fine print is that the new mortgage has to finalize within thirty days. I have been working on a refinance at renewal for clients that is set to close at the beginning of November. I took a look at how their current lender calculates the payout penalty when they are this close to renewal. It turns out they charge daily interest instead of a three-month interest penalty or interest rate differential. So I did the math. If we pay out early to take advantage of this great interest rate their payout penalty is around the $1000 mark. Over the term of the new mortgage they will save approximately $5500 in interest cost and their monthly payment will be about $85 per month less. Even after they pay out the penalty to move a bit early they will still be $4500 ahead over the term of their mortgage. This is one of the few times I’ve recommended that it makes sense to move forward ahead of the renewal date.  If you have a renewal coming up over the next few months I’d say it’s a good idea to connect with your mortgage person to look at what rates are available now and figure out whether it makes sense to consider making a move sooner rather than later. Lenders will pop up with rate specials from time to time so it is worth having your mortgage professional keep an eye open for you as your renewal date comes closer. It may just save you a significant amount of money.