Once upon a time the big bad bank of Canada huffed and puffed and tried to blow the CDN housing market down…

OK, not exactly – it’s inflation that’s the target, housing is just getting caught in the cross winds.

To be fair, rapidly rising housing prices are a reflection of inflation run wild, if not a part of the actual calculation which is in itself kind of odd.

Anyways…

What’s happening June 1?

Almost certainly a .50% rate increase is what’s happening.

Then what?

Then many of your clients; the fixed, the VRM and especially the ARM clients, they will be calling you, emailing you, texting you, DM’ing you, tagging you in tweets, posts, comments, you, you, you…

You will be in demand.

You will need to be calm, cool, and collected.

How?

Have a clear and simple message, composed of some easy to understand (& to fact-check) points.

1. If you’re in a fixed rate mortgage – this isn’t news that impacts you… or your fixed renewal rates. This is a story for clients in variable (& adjustable) rate mortgages.
2. If you’re in a variable rate mortgage – this news does not change your payment automatically, which will please some and greatly displease others… until the others learn it’s a simple matter to increase their payments if they wish to keep their amortization on track. Inform them!
3. If you’re in an adjustable rate mortgage – well perhaps we should talk… first to clearly dollarize the payment increase coming your way based on this recent news, secondly to speak about refinancing into a VRM which arguably makes vastly more sense than locking into a fixed.

On point 3, some of you will be marketing this concept via posts and videos aggressively, as you should be. It’s an excellent strategy many of you have already been implementing. Have you tended to your own mortgage as of late?

Maximized equity take out to be ready to buy if there is a dip?

Placed yourself in a VRM… with a HELOC attached?

Many clients don’t understand they have options, options to move to a different product at a different lender, options that don’t involve inflicting a 2% rate hike on themselves.

Position yourself as the expert!

Another point to make…

Recession chatter, already strong, will now be cranked up to full boil.

What does this mean?

It means that as per the Bank Of Canada’s own website suggests, they may be approaching the outer range of where they want to get to with interest rates. This may be the final rate-hike for some time.

Read the BOC’s announcement word for word, all of it, and note the current target range.

Be above the noise.

Be the clarity.

Be better!