By The Spy on
June 5, 2014
Got a hot rate tip? The Spy buys rate Intel. The Top 2 rate tips of the month earn a crisp C-note! Here’s the fine print.The rate must be: Arate that is at least 5 basis points lower than the lowest rate currently advertised by RateSpy.com for that term A current rate offered by a lender (not a broker) and...
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By The Spy on
May 13, 2014
You never know where you’ll find a great mortgage deal. Today’s rate of the day (rate of the year, actually) comes from an investment firm, Investors Group. Investor’s Group (IG) has just launched a 1.99% three-year variable. That’s the lowest rate in Canada. In fact, it’s 25 basis points below the next closest competitor. Peter Veselinovich, Vice-President, Banking & Mortgage...
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By The Spy on
May 11, 2014
The chart below shows the average best rates for each common mortgage term. This graph provides a sense for how much of a rate premium you’ll pay for the security of a longer term and/or fixed rate. Key Takeaways: The difference (spread) between 5-year fixed and variable rates remains tight by historical standards at roughly 0.59 percentage points. The long-term...
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By The Spy on
May 5, 2014
Credit unions are slowly and stealthily becoming a force in mortgage lending. We may not see any one credit union become consistently dominant, but CUs are certainly working together to promote their value. At any given time, you can expect one or more CUs to run an exceptional mortgage offer. A prime example was Meridian Credit Union’s 2.99% special that...
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By The Spy on
April 19, 2014
Do you want to monitor specific types of mortgage rates? For example: Rates on 5-year fixed terms with 120-day rate holds? 10-year fixed rates from brokers in British Columbia? Variable rates, but only from banks and credit unions? RateSpy makes it easy to monitor specific rate groups like this. All you need to do is create a custom rate URL,...
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By The Spy on
March 8, 2014
This week the Bank of Canada’s “benchmark rate,” a measureof 5-year posted mortgage rates, dropped to an all-time low of 4.99% (from 5.24%). Thebenchmark rate is an important number usedby lenders to qualify you for a mortgage (i.e., calculate how big of a mortgage you can afford). It’s also used as the basis for: •Cashback mortgage rates •Rate guarantees –...
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By The Spy on
February 1, 2014
After a six-month hiatus, 2.99% five-year fixed rates are making a triumphant return. You’ll start seeing brokers quote them online by next week. It may take major banks a bit longer to catch up (assuming rates keep falling).For the time being, however, these 2.99% specials may come with restrictions like 30-day closes, no pre-approvals, etc. Some feared 2.99% five-year fixed...
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By The Spy on
January 23, 2014
You can now email the Top 10 rates you find to anyone you like. Simply click the “Email Rates” icon on the homepageand away you go. The rates emailed are based on the rate search criteria you set. This new feature is part of theSpy’s redesigned and simplified rate search controls. We hope you like!
By The Spy on
January 16, 2014
The two most popular mortgage terms in Canada are the 5-year fixed and the variable. They account for the lion’s share of mortgage searches on RateSpy.com. For that reason, the Spy has two new dedicated rate pages: Best 5-year Fixed Mortgage Rates Best Variable Mortgage Rates
By The Spy on
January 3, 2014
Sometimes you want to quickly compare the best rates for several terms at once. For this purpose, we’ve created the rate comparison tool. First pick your province and the number of rates to display. The comparison page then returns every lender and broker serving that province. Quick tips: Click on any rate to make the Mortgage Intel window appear with...
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