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Welcome to our monthly Better Mortgage Select newsletter, this is our April 2024 edition.

 

Brought to you by Daniel Patton, Michael Zanzini and Lorenzo Podda.


   

Anyone else starting to get that 'Groundhog Day' feeling when the Bank of Canada has their interest rate meetings?  If you are, you're not alone!



For the 6th meeting in a row, the key interest rate in our country has been held.  For those keeping score, that's also eight of the last ten meetings where we have seen no movement by the Bank of Canada.  

 

Governor Tiff Macklem's remarks at the Bank of Canada press conference this morning were noteworthy, clearly having dropped his previously 'hawkish' tone.  There was also a hint of a 'dovish' tone, as there was zero discussion about possible future interest rate hikes, and he publicly acknowledged the fact that the next direction for interest rates will be downward.  He also did not shut down a reporter's question about a possible June or July rate decrease if inflation kept its current downward trend, stating that a rate decrease in June or July was a “possibility”.

 

There is no Bank of Canada interest rate meeting next month.  June 5th will be the next time we hear from Tiff Macklem and the BOC gang, and we'll head into that meeting with two CPI reports (one this month and one in May) preceding the bank's interest rate decision.  

 

As a reminder, our prediction has long been that we believed the Bank of Canada would start decreasing their key interest rate by the June, July, or September scheduled meetings this year. We will soon find out if we need to get out of the 'prediction business'.

   


When we talk about the possibility of interest rates coming down in the near future, we know that this hinges on our inflation rate leading the charge.  Upward spikes to inflation will be kryptonite to Canadian's hopes for lower rates, it's just that simple. So, the timing of global oil prices jumping by a chunky 22% in the last two months, is not likely to help in the Bank of Canada's quest to see a 2.5% inflation rate by the end of the summer.  Throw in our Prime Minister Trudeau's decision to increase the carbon tax on April 1st, and you get the sense that this government has two heads; one head talks publicly about how they want to see the Bank of Canada lower rates to help Canadians with affordability, yet the other head just keeps creating ways to make affordability tougher.

 

Make no mistake, we are now entering the proverbial 'crunch time' when it comes to inflation and interest rates.  These next three to four months of inflationary data will determine if we get any interest rate relief in 2024. We know the Bank of Canada wants to lower the rates; however, if headline inflation sits higher than 2.5% by August, then we can likely rule out any interest rate decreases for the year.  If headline inflation is at 2.5% or lower by August, then interest rate cuts should come (if not already announced in June or July).  

 

After producing consecutive CPI reports that saw the headline inflation figure begin with a '2' (something we had not seen since March and April 2021), we now wait with baited breath until next Tuesday's inflationary data gets released.  

 

**UPDATE:  US inflationary data for the month of March was just released, showing a spike upwards to 3.5%, from 3.2%.  This will likely move Bond Yields higher (where fixed rates are priced from) in the short term, at least until we get the Canadian inflationary report next week**.

   
   

First, we wanted to send out a big THANK YOU to you, and all the attendees of our First-Time Buyers webinar that we held last month.  Almost every attendee of the webinar was there because of YOU, our loyal clients. You passed along the word to those you knew would benefit from it, and again, we can't thank you enough.  The webinar was a resounding success, and our team has been working with many that attended to help them begin their quest of home ownership.

 

Our next webinar is geared towards real estate investors who are looking at creative ways to expand their portfolio during these tough times. "Mortgages for Multi-Family and Commercial Properties" will be hosted on Wednesday, May 29th at 6:30pm EST.  At this webinar we are going to show you what real estate investments are still providing strong cash flow, and what you need to know about how to qualify for these different types of mortgages.  In the world of real estate investing, it's tough to deny the fact that higher interest rates have made it much harder to find winning real estate investments.  The investor that adapts to the ever-changing financial environment is the one that will win in the long run, and it's been clear over the last 12-24 months that investors who have been focusing on finding ways to generate more rental income per property are edging out their competition.  This webinar aims to share important information that will, hopefully, allow you to begin scaling your portfolio again!  Click HERE to register for the May 29th webinar.

   
   

In addition to our May 29th webinar, don’t forget to check out our other webinars scheduled for 2024 and pre-register now:

   
   
   
   

Rockstar Real Estate held their 'Your Life, Your Terms' conference last weekend, and what a pleasure it was to be there in person along with over 1,000 other real estate investors.  These events that Rockstar puts on seem to draw more attendees each time and it never disappoints.  From the star-studded expert panel to Tom Karadza's economic update, the conference has a bit of something for everyone.  Better Mortgage Select was well represented, as always, and it was great to see so many of our clients in person.  In case you missed it or missed seeing us there, Rockstar puts on two of these conferences every year, so you'll have one more chance in 2024 to join in the fun.

   
   
   
     
   

Our friends at the Michael St. Jean Real Estate Brokerage held their annual awards dinner last month, and what a spectacle it was.  2023 was not considered a banner year by almost anyone when it comes to real estate in Canada, but the Michael St. Jean group clearly bucked the trend, with many of their team winning prestigious performance awards.  Congrats to all the award winners!

   
   
     
   

Our very own Sr. Mortgage Agent, Michael Zanzini was a busy man last month!  First, he was invited by our friends at the Smart Home Choice Investment Club to attend a Toronto property tour where he shared his insights on converting homes to multi-unit and generating more cashflow, as well as showcasing the new mortgage rules around adding garden suites.

 

Then the following week, Michael was teaching Financial Literacy at a youth event hosted by Gary Hibbert, and our partners at Our Neighborhood Realty. This was a fantastic opportunity for Michael and Better Mortgage Select to give back and educate young 14–17-year-olds on the importance of building credit, managing expenses, and tips on how to prepare yourself for getting a mortgage pre-approval.

   
   
   
     
   

And finally, last night Better Mortgage Select's Vice-President and Director of Sales, Daniel Patton, was the expert guest speaker at a Private Lending webinar put on by our partners at KeySpire.  For those that don't know, Better Mortgage Select is very active in the private mortgage market, helping investors who are looking for a way to diversify their real estate investment portfolios.  Daniel shared with the group his personal experiences as a private lender himself, helping to educate those attending on the key rules to AVOID LOSING money in the private lending world.  With so much media these days showcasing subpar private lending practices by a lot of 'pretender' mortgage brokerages, it was time to let the real private lending expert initiate and educate, and that's just what Daniel did.

   
   
     
   

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: