1) The “LOWEST” RATE is not always the “BEST” MORTGAGE.  Would you buy a car without a seatbelt?  What about heating?  These are some of the essential features we come to realize that we need when we buy a car. Mortgages can be compared to car shopping in the sense that the bank offering a 5.00% mortgage is just as shiny on the outside as the bank offering 5.25%, but once you own it, you will probably find that the 5.00% mortgage didn’t come with some safety features or creature comforts that the 5.25% mortgage came with.  .25% can be very insignificant if you find that your new mortgage is not transferable to another bank, not portable to another property, is compounded monthly, or comes with huge penalties when you want to pay it off early.

2) BEWARE!   Each time you walk into a bank and apply for a mortgage, that bank will pull a credit bureau on you.  Why is this bad?  Each time a credit inquiry is made on your credit bureau, it begins to deterioriate your precious credit rating. Good credit ratings are essential to getting a mortgage and even more important to getting a good rate.  Your broker pulls only one single credit report on you and submits it to dozens of different lenders on your behalf.  This protects you from bruising your credit rating.

3) You harm your chances of getting a great mortgage and great rate when you shop the banks on your own.  What you do not realize is that  once you have applied with your bank, or elsewhere, your broker is prohibited to negotiate a mortgage on your behalf with these banks. You might have gotten a better deal had you just let your broker do their job without getting involved in the process. Don’t’ spin your wheels! Let the experts do the work!  Give your broker the reigns and let them do the best possible job for you!

4) DON’T BE FOOLED into thinking that a “PREAPPROVAL”  means you have been “APPROVED” for your mortgage financing.  A preapproved mortgage simply shows you what you can afford and the bank holds a rate for a period of time while you shop for your new home.  The bank must still “approve” of the property, and much needs to be done before you can buy the property and know that your financing is securely in place.  Follow through on the entire process with your broker, and you will see how easy it is when you have someone to step you through the process and watch your back along the way.

5)   Fixed and Variable.  (Compare Apples to Apples – Oranges to Oranges).      Mortgages can be separated into these two basic catagories:  Don’t mistake an advertised “variable rate mortgage rate with that of a “fixed rate mortgage rate”.  Roughly half of the population wants the comfort of knowing what their interest rate will be and therefore their monthly payments, while others want their mortgage rate to fluctuate below the prime rate and therefore, the payments will go up and down. These variable rate mortgages can save you money, but they differ vastly in their terms from bank to bank.  Only sophisticated brokers that are familiar with all the variable rate mortgage terms can help you understand what you are actually getting, and  determine which one is right for you. 

6)   Using a mortgage broker is by far the best way to go about finding and arranging the very best mortgage to suit your specific needs.  Trust in a specialist that knows how to package your application, what pitfalls to look out for, and how to protect your interests when dealing with the banks.  Sure, you might get the same rate that a broker could get for you, but what you won’t get is all the facts about the mortgage that you have shopped for.  A mortgage broker/specialist navigates you around those banks with mortgages that appear to be the best deal out there, but fall short of your expectations.  Brokered mortgages may not be as “flashy” on the exterior, but they will have all the “nuts and bolts” built into them to protect you from unforeseeable circumstances that often arise.