AGENT LICENSE ID
M10002682
BROKERAGE LICENSE ID
11995

Lei Villar-Cisneros
Mortgage Agent
Office:
Phone:
Email:
Address:
1024 Kennedy Rd, Toronto, Ontario
BROWSE
PARTNERS
It PAYS to shop around.
Many Canadian homeowners pay too much for their homes because they are not getting the best mortgage financing available in the market.
The mortgage process can be intimidating for homeowners, and some financial institutions don't make the process any easier.
But I’m here to help!
I’m a VERICO Mortgage Advisor and I’m an independent, unbiased, expert, here to help you move into a home you love.
I have access to mortgage products from over forty lenders at my fingertips and I work with you to determine the best product that will fit your immediate financial needs and future goals.
VERICO mortgage specialists are Canada’s Trusted Experts who will be with you through the life of your mortgage.
I save you money by sourcing the best products at the best rates – not only on your first mortgage but through every subsequent renewal. So whether you're buying a home, renewing your mortgage, refinancing, renovating, investing, or consolidating your debts — I’m the VERICO Mortgage Advisor who can help you get the right financing, from the right lender, at the right rate.
Many Canadian homeowners pay too much for their homes because they are not getting the best mortgage financing available in the market.
The mortgage process can be intimidating for homeowners, and some financial institutions don't make the process any easier.
But I’m here to help!
I’m a VERICO Mortgage Advisor and I’m an independent, unbiased, expert, here to help you move into a home you love.
I have access to mortgage products from over forty lenders at my fingertips and I work with you to determine the best product that will fit your immediate financial needs and future goals.
VERICO mortgage specialists are Canada’s Trusted Experts who will be with you through the life of your mortgage.
I save you money by sourcing the best products at the best rates – not only on your first mortgage but through every subsequent renewal. So whether you're buying a home, renewing your mortgage, refinancing, renovating, investing, or consolidating your debts — I’m the VERICO Mortgage Advisor who can help you get the right financing, from the right lender, at the right rate.
BLOG / NEWS Updates
Are You Over-Improving Your House?
Did you purchase a property last year in the hopes of flipping it out for profit? Are you adding stainless steel appliances, hardwood floors, granite counter tops, etc? Before you put out the next dollar for home improvement, check if it will help your property get the profit you are eyeing on or does it, really? So what is over-improvement? By definition, an over-improvement is an alteration or improvement that is made to a property where the cost is greater than the market value added to said property. If the improvement you are considering is substantially better than what is typical for the market area, you probably will not add value. In order to understand what constitutes an over-improvement, it’s crucial to understand the market dynamics of the area you are in and in particular, the ceiling. A common mistake people make is over-improving a home and then expecting to be rewarded greatly for their efforts. It is a rare instance where one can go comp-busting and set a new peak for the neighborhood… so don’t expect or rely on it. Understanding market dynamics: Picture a suburban neighbourhood, 200 cookie cutter homes. The homes were all built by the same developer, are all 2 stories and range from 2,000 to 2,500 square feet. You purchased a home and are considering making some improvements. Here are some tips: Know what the ceiling in your area is. If the highest sale is consistently riding around $450,000, cap your improvement budget based on this information. It’s best not to spend more renovating your home than the neighborhood cap minus your home’s present value. And that’s being generous. Most of the time you want to play it even more conservative and use the neighborhood median as your cap. If the largest home in your subdivision is 2,500 square feet, it’s best not to spend money on adding square footage above and beyond the cap. You’ll likely get very little return. If every house in your neighbourhood has vinyl floors, white appliances, and laminate countertops, you could be over-improving if you spend top dollar on custom tile floors, top notch stainless appliances, and granite countertops. It’s true that these improvements could make your home stand out more in marketplace, and attract more buyers to look at your property but you may not recoup the money invested. If you are going to add more living space, it’s best to develop an attic before a basement. By and large, above-grade square footage is more valuable than below-grade. Just make sure your attic is livable. A nicely developed attic where you can only stand upright in the middle is of minimal value. If you’ve ever heard the saying that it’s better to be the worst home on a fantastic block versus the best home on a mediocre block, it’s true. Keep this in mind when improving your home. The closer you get to being the nicest home around, the more your efforts (and invested dollars) will be diminished. In general, it makes financial sense to improve a home when the improvements bring the home up to par with its surroundings. Here are some exceptions to the aforementioned tips: If you are going to derive more pleasure from your over-improvements than you lose in value, then who cares about money. Not everyone occupies homes so they can make tons of money. Lifestyle and amenities can certainly surpass investing wisdom. Unique (non-conformist) properties do not apply. For example, if you live in the 1880's stone cottage that was spared during the development of a 500-home subdivision, then don’t worry about what the neighboring homes are selling for. They are in all likelihood not comparable. If you intend to hold your property for a very long time, then a little over-improvement today can be recouped over long stretches. Repairs do not count. A repair that does not return its dollar cost back to you in added value is known as “incurable physical deterioration”.
Home sales plunged as interest rates continued to rise in May
On a seasonally adjusted basis, home sales slumped 8.6% from April to May, bringing the level of sales slightly below its 10-year average for the first time in 24 months. This decline also represents a third consecutive decrease, with sales down a cumulative 23.0% between February and May. The downward trend is now well established in the country as 75% of the markets have seen their number of transactions decrease during the month. We believe this market moderation should continue in the coming months as the tightening of monetary policy should push variable rates higher and make the stress test even more biting for buyers. Indeed, the stress test uses the higher of 5.25% or the contractual interest rate +2%. Until now, only customers opting for a fixed rate had to qualify with a rate of more than 5.25%. With the Bank of Canada policy rate increase expected in July, the qualification for a variable rate will also exceed 5.25%, a development that should cool the market further since over half of new mortgages are at variable rates.
According to CREA, new listings rose 4.5% in May, the first increase in three months. With the reduction in sales and the increase in new properties for sale, the number of months of inventory rose from 2.3 to 2.7 months in May, its highest level since July 2020. Based on the active-listings-to-sales ratio, market conditions loosened in almost every province during the month, but the housing market continued to be tight in the country as a whole. There are now 3 provinces out of 10 in balanced territory; B.C., Saskatchewan, and Alberta (the latter switched this month). The others continued to indicate market conditions favourable to sellers mainly due to lack of supply.
On a year-over-year basis, home sales fell 21.7% compared to the strongest month of May recorded in 2021. For the first five months of 2022, cumulative sales were down 17.8% compared to the same period in 2021.
Housing starts in Canada increased for a second month in a row by 21.SK in May to 287.3K (seasonally adjusted and annualized), the strongest print since November 2021 (at 305.9K). Starts were well above consensus calling for a 255K print in May while building permits remained high on a historical basis and housing supply continues to be tight. As interest rates rise and demand in the resale market declines, we expect housing starts to also moderate in the coming year.
The Teranet-National Bank Composite National House Price Index increased 2.0% in April compared to March and after seasonal adjustment. On a year-over-year basis, home price increased by 18.8% in April. Ten of the 11 markets in the composite index were up during the month, with Edmonton being the exception.
Source: https://www.nbc.ca/content/dam/bnc/en/rates-and-analysis/economic-analysis/economic-news-resale-market.pdf
Canada’s Housing Supply Shortages: Estimating what is needed to solve Canada’s housing affordability crisis by 2030
Were in a housing crisis. This report looks at the overall affordability for the entire housing system in Canada. The report has taken steps to estimate how much additional housing supply is required beyond current trends to restore housing affordability by 2030.
Key Highlights
CMHC projects that if current rates of new construction continue, the housing stock will increase to close to 19 million housing units by 2030. To restore affordability, CMHC projects Canada will need an additional 3.5 million units.
Two-thirds of the 3.5 million housing unit gap is in Ontario and British Columbia where housing markets are least affordable.
Additional supply would also be needed in Quebec, a province once considered affordable. It has seen a marked decline in affordability over the last few years. Other provinces remain largely affordable for a household with the average level of disposable income. However, challenges remain for low-income households in accessing housing that is affordable across Canada.
Source: https://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/professionals/housing-markets-data-and-research/housing-research/research-reports/accelerate-supply/housing-shortages-canada-solving-affordability-crisis