Today's top trending story on the Financial Post website is titled "Some Canadians are regretting their mortgages amid high interest rates". Survey finds 21.8% can't afford their current mortgage.
A sad reality for too many homeowners, especially recent ones, is taking on too much mortgage debt to overextend into buying a home. Record low pandemic era mortgage rates seduced too many ill-informed home buyers into over-extending themselves, on the false belief that ultra low mortage rates would be here to stay for the long-term.
As I've written about in past blog posts, it is critical to adhere to traditional affordability metrics and not succumb to the emotional trap of Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) and the madness of crowds that sometimes become price and budget indiscriminate as they bid up real estate prices to the moon. The laws of finance are eternal and the gravity of math always applies. Financial balance and quality of life should not generally be sacrificed to secure a home. The mental and physical stress is often not worth it, in my opinion.
If you are in a tough financial situation and are considering or really need to sell, due to financial strain or hardship, please don't hesitate to contact me. I can work with you to discuss options like downsizing your home or selling your place at a competitive commission. I can work with you to negotiate a commission structure that might make it easier for you to sell and get out of your financial predicament.
Prospective homebuyers should take some time to carefully consider the closing costs and on-going expenses of being a homeowner. There is more than just a mortgage payment involved and costs of carrying a property do tend to go up over time (i.e. insurance, property taxes, repairs and maintenance etc.).
A home is a shelter. It should not be viewed as a speculative commoditity that you use extreme leverage to acquire and trade. Unfortunately, some people in expensive Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley housing markets are learning this the hard way.
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