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Welcome to our monthly Better Mortgage Select newsletter, this is the March 2025 edition.

 

Brought to you by Daniel Patton, Michael Zanzini, Lorenzo Podda, and our President, Dave Butler.

   
   

Let’s start with the good news: Interest rates continue to drop.


No, they’re not back to 2020/2021 levels - and we probably shouldn’t expect to see those ultra-low COVID-era rates again. However, mortgage rates around 4% (or even slightly lower) are officially here, and there’s a chance they could improve further in the short term.


As of now, for owner-occupied and secondary homes, getting a mortgage rate around 4% - and sometimes even lower - is slowly becoming the new norm at most big banks and mortgage lenders.


For insured mortgages (when a property is being purchased with less than 20% down), every approval we’ve received in the past week and a half has come back with rate offerings of:

For conventional mortgages (20%+ down payment or refinancing), we’re seeing:

Many clients in variable rates have been reaching out to their lenders to discuss using their conversion clause to lock into a 5-year fixed rate. The reports that we're receiving is that most of our clients are being offered between 3.94% and 4.14% to lock in at no cost. There is still the odd bank who's holding out on offering these lower conversion rates, but likely not for much longer.


For our investor clients, although mortgages for rental properties still carry a slight premium (0.10% - 0.50% above standard), we’re seeing a lot of renewed activity from investors eager to jump on these lower rates. We are currently helping investors turn cashflow-negative properties into neutral or even cashflow-positive ones!


The Not-So-Great News: Inflation spikes in February

 

Last week, the Canadian CPI data for February was released, and headline inflation jumped from 1.9% in January to 2.6% in February; the highest since last June.

   
   
   

There’s been a lot of talk suggesting the spike is “transitory,” and that inflation will ease again over the coming months. However, the last time we heard that word being tossed around, we ended up facing the worst inflation crisis Canada had seen in over 30 years.


So, What Does This Mean?


It means we all need to be cautious.


If inflation continues rising, it could limit the Bank of Canada’s ability to keep lowering interest rates. In fact, if it climbs too much, the bank might even have to raise rates again. And keep in mind - long before the Bank of Canada reacts, the bond market (which determines fixed mortgage pricing) will have already moved.


So, we must stay alert, stay nimble, and watch the data closely.


For now, we remain optimistic that rates will continue to inch down in the short term. But we’re proceeding with caution and watching the next inflation report, scheduled for Tuesday, April 15th, very closely. That’s just one day before the Bank of Canada’s next rate decision on April 16th.

 

In three weeks’ time, we’ll bring you all the latest news and data within minutes of the Bank of Canada’s rate announcement.

   
   
   

On March 6th, we sent out an email showing that anyone who signed a 3-year fixed rate mortgage in 2023 or 2024, were losing money. Check out the article HERE or watch the video below:

   
   

Rates were at their peak in 2023 and 2024, and our data showed that paying the penalty to break the mortgage - and rolling it into a new mortgage at today’s lower rates - could save clients serious money.


We’re thrilled to report that we received hundreds of inquiries from clients wanting to know how much they could save. In just three weeks, we’ve already funded 41 new mortgages for clients stuck in high-interest 3-year fixed terms. These clients are now collectively enjoying:

  • Lower interest rates
  • Lower monthly payments
  • No renewal until 2030
  • And a combined savings so far of nearly $350,000.00!

We also have 32 more approved files set to close over the next two and a half weeks, and inquiries are still coming in strong.


DON’T IGNORE THE DATA.


 Let us do a quick analysis for you to see how much you could be saving!

   
   

Thank you again to everyone that attended our webinar last month.  It was a fantastic turnout and congrats again to Donald Sylvester for winning a $150.00 Amazon gift card, just for being an attendee!

 

Our next webinar is just around the corner on: Wednesday, April 9th. We will be discussing the spring real estate market and the trends we are seeing, providing helpful tips and updates on the interest rate market, and how we see things playing out over the summer. And of course, we’ll be answering your tailored mortgage questions at the end in our group Q&A.  Be sure to register below!

   
   
   

We decided to open the month with some Better Mortgage Select team building, by taking the crew to Classic Bowl in Mississauga for a good ol’ fashion shootout.  It’s always a great time when we get to take a reprieve from fighting in the mortgage trenches every week and spend some quality non-work moments together.

   
   
     
   

April is going to be a busy month and our good friends and partners at Rock Star Real Estate are participating in a big way with their ‘Your Life, Your Terms’ event on Saturday, April 12th.  Tom and Nick Karadza and the Rock Star crew are taking the event to new heights, switching it to from a HALF-DAY to an ALL-DAY event where you can learn, network and enhance your real estate experience.  Their events are so diverse and can appeal to seasoned investors, new prospective investors, or just an every-day Canadian who is interested in the housing market.  Our Better Mortgage Select team will be there the entire day, so don’t forget to come and visit us at our booth!


Check out the Your Life Your Terms event HERE!

   
   
     
   

Speaking of Rockstar Real Estate - Operations Manager, Lorenzo Podda, was on the ‘Your Life, Your Terms’ podcast this month with host, Nick Karadza.  Lorenzo spoke about his early life growing up in the real estate investing world, his entry into the mortgage industry and what it takes for new up and comer’s to succeed.  Check it out:

   
   
     
   

Our very own Senior Mortgage Agent, Michael Zanzini, kicked off March with a bang!

 

Michael joined our partners at Our Neighborhood Realty to deliver a comprehensive market update during their monthly team meeting, providing valuable insights to their team of real estate agents. He also fielded a wide range of mortgage-related questions, helping agents — and their clients — gear up for a strong start to the 2025 Spring market.

   
   
     
   

Vice President, Daniel Patton, along with Lorenzo Podda, were able to find some time to do some solid networking with our good friends, Gary Hibbert (owner of Smart Home Choice and host of the ‘Real Talk with Gary’ podcast) as well as Andrew Roach, of the Roach Family Real Estate team. They discussed the upcoming spring market, touched on some new best practices and went over our new ‘10 minute pre-approval’ that was just released on our NEW mortgage app.  The app helps active buyers crunch numbers and make decisions in a much timelier fashion, all from the comfort of their phone.  Thanks to Gary and Andrew for coming out!

 

Anyone interested in downloading our new mortgage app? Find your Better Mortgage Select agent below and click to download for iOS and Android!

 

Daniel Patton: Download here

Michael Zanzini: Download here

Lorenzo Podda: Download here

   
   
     
   

Daniel was putting in the road work this month as he was invited to be a guest speaker at the Rock Star Real Estate office along with realtor extraordinaire, Mike Desormeaux. The event focused on many of the challenges that buyers and investors are facing in today’s volatile environment, along with some updates on interest rates.  Daniel and Mike always have a great time at these events as they both share a love for educating and providing unique value to their clients.

   
   
   
     
   

Last week, Michael - no stranger to the camera - spent a full day filming content with the dynamic mother - son realtor duo, Lucy and Anthony Bordin. Together, they shot an engaging podcast and captured social media content, diving into everything mortgage and real estate.  As soon as its released we’ll be sure to post the link for everyone to watch and learn!

   
   
     
   

Looking ahead, Michael will be the keynote speaker at Lucy and Anthony’s upcoming Real Estate Insider Playbook event on April 5th. Stay tuned - exciting things are on the horizon!

   
   
     
   

We were wondering why Daniel was such a great bowler at our team event, and now we know why. Here’s a quick shot of Daniel and one of our many great realtor partners, Carlo Sconza.  Carlo hosted a customer event with over 40 attendees and as you can see, it looks like they had a great time. Daniel says he bowled a 180 - and judging by his form at our team event, we would not doubt him.

   
     
   

Just a friendly reminder to come visit us on our socials, where we put out a ton of videos with tips and information to help you navigate the wild world of mortgages! Check out the links below and give us a follow!

   
   
   
     
   

As always, if you have any questions or want to do some mortgage planning, feel free to reach out to us at: