Buying your first home in Kitchener Waterloo can be confusing enough. Recently, the federal government made 3 changes to mortgage policy through the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation(CMHC) that created further confusion. While I read a great deal about the changes, the analysis of the impact of the changes was sorely lacking. So if I'm a first time buyer in ...
Posted by Jeff Gingerich
on January 22, 2011
September saw improved residential sales results in Kitchener Waterloo and this was reflected in the MLS power of sale activity. There were 11 residential sales under power of sale on the K-W MLS versus 8 in August. Of note, 3 were in Waterloo and 8 in Kitchener. The property shown above attracted multiple offers and sold under power of sale at a signifiicant premium to the ...
Posted by Jeff Gingerich
on October 23, 2010
The surge in power of sale activity witnessed in Kitchener Waterloo in June carried over to July. The Kitchener-Waterloo MLS reported 13 residential sales in July matching the 13 recorded in June. The sales totals for these months represents the highest number of power of sales for any month in 2010. Totals for January to May ranged from 8-12 so perhaps ...
Posted by Jeff Gingerich
on August 21, 2010
There are days in real estate and in life where you come across things that just don't sit well. I usually try and think things through but sometimes I still end up like the photo above...puzzled. I found this gem while searching MLS for suitable properties for a buyer client.
I was equally puzzled by an article in today's National Post entitled "Variable ...
Posted by Jeff Gingerich
on July 28, 2010
Power of sale activity on the Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board rocketed higher in June 2010. Active MLS residential listings in mid-July totalled 18. This represents a sharp increase over the 13 and 10 active listings in mid-June and May respectively. Of note, 17 are located in Kitchener and 1 in Waterloo and the great majority of listings are concentrated under ...
Posted by Jeff Gingerich
on July 16, 2010
Bargain hunters continue to be denied and bankers delighted as May residential sales of Power of Sale properties continued to show strong results. There were 8 MLS sales under power of sale in K-W in May with 1 in Waterloo and 7 in Kitchener. The average days on the market for these homes was only 32 days and the list-to-sale price ratio was a ...
Posted by Jeff Gingerich
on June 25, 2010
To me, urgency is part of the the appeal of the NCAA basketball tournament known as March Madness. It's win or go home. It appears buyers adopted this attitude in March as MLS sales activity in Kitchener-Waterloo saw year-over-year increases of 9% in average price and 38% in unit sales. March unit sales in K-W totalled 546 besting the 507 sales in March ...
Posted by Jeff Gingerich
on April 6, 2010
Many lenders have cancelled their pre-approval program. Others are charging a rate premium. Why? It's estimated that less than 1/3 of pre-approvals are funded. Those that aren't cost millions of dollars in wasted time and effort. So what to do? At Centum Discount Mortgage Canada, we can pre-qualify you and do a credit check. You'll know what you ...
Posted by Jeff Gingerich
on July 4, 2009
In my last post, we looked at the consequences of higher interest rates upon the renewal of your mortgage. Here are 10 tips designed to protect you from becoming overextended financially in this event.
1. Don't buy too much home. Avoid the temptation to overspend based on what you qualify for. Downsize your expectations and upgrade when you have more equity. Remember ...
Posted by Jeff Gingerich
on July 3, 2009
As Realtors, we are certainly thankful for the resurgent real estate market Canada-wide. Low interest rates have been instrumental in increasing affordability to entice first-time buyers into the market. Real estate is local so let's look at a typical scenario in Kitchener-Waterloo. A couple buy a detached home for $250 000 with 5% down and get a 4% mortgage with a 5 year ...
Posted by Jeff Gingerich
on June 25, 2009