Mortgage Brokers More About Second Mortgage | Page 8

3-STEP GUIDE TO GETTING A MORTGAGE • Do your homework • The first step to getting a mortgage is to have all your affairs in order. This covers a number of points including the borrower’s eligibility, affordability and preferences, and the property they are interested in. • When looking at different properties, there are two things that you should keep in mind apart from your own personal requirements for the house –the down payment required and the possible installments. You should have enough savings in the bank for you to put a down payment on the property, and some more. Also, you need to estimate how much money you are left with monthly after taking out all your fixed expenses and living costs. The amount you will be left with is what your monthly payments will come out of. • Run a personal ‘stress test’ to see if you are eligible for the new OSFI guidelines ahead of the actual process. Furthermore, you need to go through your credit history to see if you will appear to be a good risk for financial institutions or not. One way to improve your credit score is to pay off all pending loans, to increase your likelihood of getting a mortgage.