The days of the mortgage broker who charges an arm and a leg just to get you financing are gone. No longer is the mortgage broker a last resort source of financing.

So why would you see a mortgage broker instead of your family banker?

1. Lower rates – even if you know your bank’s loan officer, a mortgage broker can usually get you a better rate.

2. Multiple lenders. I have access to more than 20 prime lenders with various products to suite your family needs and long term financial goals.

3. Mortgage brokers can be more flexible and can try innovative financing for special occasions.

4. Receive a mortgage from the comforts of your own home, less running around. Your mortgage broker may even come to your home. Saves you from taking time off work. Ever see a banker do that?

5. Better customer service. Although banks are open longer hours nowadays. They will not answer their phone in the evening or meet you on the weekend – I will!

6. The mortgage broker wants you to get a mortgage. In almost all cases the mortgage broker only get paid if you get a mortgage through them, the banker is on salary and won’t fight as hard for you. Do be wary of mortgage brokers that want to charge you a fee (either upfront or in the mortgage). We get paid by the lending institution. It pays to ask first!

Canadians purchase homes for a variety of reasons. Some want the stability of owning their own home, while others also look at home ownership as an investment vehicle. No matter what the reason, the truth is that home ownership has proven itself to be a good stable investment over time, and one which many Canadians are profiting from.

While many people have chosen to purchase their first home during these times of lower interest rates, there has also been a large movement to refinance home loans and pull out equity for home improvements, investments, college expenses, and even high interest debt consolidation. Canadians have been borrowing against their home’s equity in record numbers, taking out billions of dollars in cash each year.

In years past, many saw their homes as a shelter of safety, yet today, they are more than ever before willing to borrow against the equity owned in their homes to further their investment portfolios, get out of debt, send their children to university, make improvements to their home, or even boost their RRSP contributions. Where home equity was once sat upon, today it is something to be tapped out and used to one’s advantage.

While tapping the equity in your home can be a good idea, you should do so with caution and understand any of the possible consequences. The best thing you can do is contact me, a licensed mortgage professional and/and financial planner to discuss opportunities to make your home’s equity work for you.