A growing number of banks, credit unions and other Lenders are using something called a collateral charge when setting up your mortgage, often without you even knowing. What exactly is a “collateral charge” and how does it impact you? In simple terms, a “collateral charge” is the way your bank registers your mortgage. Unlike a “standard charge” whi...

Real Estate is an interesting sales career.  In most sales careers, the individual is working for a company selling their products (eg. The Xerox sales rep) or might be selling their services (a mechanic, a lawyer, Molly Maid).  What's unique about Real Estate is that the real estate Sales Representative is really selling his/her "skill s...

Recently a certain builder in Waterdown released a new "Phase" of homes they were building in the area. What I found shocking was the response of potential purchasers. They camped outside the builder's Sales Center overnight, just to get a chance to buy one of the new homes. It gave me visions of the Apple Store when they release a new iPhone... bu...

More answers to your condominium questions! Q) What is a reserve fund? Is it the same as a reserve fund study? A) A reserve fund is a fund that is used for the purpose of major repair and replacement of the common elements and assets of the corporation. It is not the same as a reserve fund study. A reserve fund study is a periodic review to determi...

First Time Homebuying - Mortgage Approval Documents One of the most critical parts of buying your first home (or any home) is the Mortgage. Unless you are fortunate enough to have the cash to purchase the home outright, you will need a mortgage to complete the purchase. To make this process as easy and straight forward as possible, I always re...