July 31, 2025 • 35 mins
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EPISODE DESCRIPTION
In this episode, Sarah is joined by Cat Robert. Cat is a licensed mortgage broker from Kelowna, BC, who works behind the scenes as Sarah's fulfillment specialist. Sarah & Cat lift the curtain on what actually happens during the mortgage process, addressing common misconceptions, and the unique aspects of their virtual mortgage business that enhance client experience.
Cat is here to discuss:
→ Why you should work with a broker instead of the bank, how they care for a client's entire financial picture, and the ways they keep clients informed and simplify complex mortgage procedures.
→ The documents needed to get a mortgage, unexpected income sources that can boost your purchasing power, exploring the different down payment options, being prepared for closing costs, understanding conditional approvals, and the final signing with a lawyer.
→ The unique guidelines for self-employed mortgages, the importance of mortgage protection insurance (MPP), the lowest your credit score can be to qualify for a mortgage, and one thing everyone should know about the mortgage process.
***
CONNECT WITH THE SHOW
🎙️ Alberta Bound Podcast: Alberta Bound: Building Wealth Through Real Estate (in Alberta)
📺 Alberta Bound YouTube: @AlbertaBound-Broker
***
CONNECT WITH SARAH
📸 Sarah Hainsworth's Instagram: @emeraldmortgages
👥 Sarah Hainsworth's Facebook: @SarahHainsworth
📋 Sarah Hainsworth's LinkedIn: @SarahHainsworth
🔗 Emerald Mortgages Website: www.emeraldmortgages.ca
***
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Welcome to this episode of theAlberta Bound podcast.
(00:03):
My name is Sarah Hainsworth,mortgage broker and your guide to
building wealth through realestate in Alberta.
Today we're lifting the curtain onwhat actually happens behind the
scenes of a mortgage.
I'm joined by Kat, my fulfillment
specialist and the secret weaponwho gets deals across the finish
line.
If you've ever been confused by
mortgage paperwork or wonderedwhat happens behind the scenes,
(00:24):
you're not going to want to missthis episode.
Welcome to the Alberta Boundpodcast.
My name is Sarah Hainsworth,mortgage broker and your guide to
investing in real estate here inAlberta.
Today, I have the pleasure ofspeaking with Kat.
And if you've ever wondered whatgives my mortgage business its
edge, it's Kat.
She's our fulfillment specialist
(00:45):
and the driving force behind thescenes.
Kat, do you want to just hop onand say hello?
Hi.
Hi. Thanks for having me.
I'm so glad you're here.
I mean, you're behind the scenes
all the time, but it's nice tokind of put you in the forefront
of the business because You reallydo a lot behind the scenes.
And so, yeah, I'm happy to haveyou on today.
Yeah, thank you.
So Kat works behind the scenes of
the business and she, like Imentioned, is the fulfillment
(01:07):
specialist.
So why don't you tell everybody
what that means, like what yourjob kind of entails?
Yeah, so basically I make sure wecollect all the documents that the
lender is going to need throughoutthe process, which can get... a
little complicated and kind ofheavy, but we try to keep it as
simple as possible.
Lenders do have very specific
guidelines.
So my job is basically to make
sure that we stay within thoseguidelines and communicate with
(01:29):
them throughout the process on howwe can get the mortgage funded and
show them all the confirmationthat they need.
Well, I don't think people reallyknow how much goes into the behind
the scenes parts of it like thedocument collection is probably
the most tedious part of doingmortgages definitely yeah and
you're the one that's in therekind of in the weeds I think your
job is in the forefront, eventhough I'm kind of forward facing
(01:53):
because you're in the background,like you're doing a ton of work
behind the scenes.
you're in the background, like
you're doing a ton of work behindthe scenes.
And we don't always share thatwith clients because I can get
pretty tedious and we don't wantto worry everybody.
So I know.
know.
Right.
Well, and that's the thing is you
do such a good job of giving likewhite glove service that clients
don't actually know that sometimeswe're like ducks on water and our
feet are going underneath.
But on the top, we're calm, cool
(02:14):
and collected.
Yeah.
So yeah.
I really appreciate that with you.
Yeah.
So on this episode, we're going to
demystify the mortgage process,squash common misconceptions, and
then kind of talk a little bitabout lender guidelines that you
might not know about.
Let's start with an opener
question.
So what's one thing you wish
everyone understood beforestarting the mortgage process?
(02:35):
So the mortgage process can bepretty complex from start to
finish, whether clients see thatside of it or not.
There are a lot of little thingsthat go into getting the approval.
One of the major things beingdocument collection.
So something I wish everybody knewwas that you should definitely
talk to your mortgage brokerbefore going shopping.
to obviously solidify your budgetand also so we can start
(02:56):
collecting everything that we needto ensure a smoother process and
just less stress for everybodyinvolved.
Because like I said, it is kind oftedious getting all those
documents and most people, ittakes them a bit of time to locate
them, but being prepared, I thinkis the best.
the best.
We're not just asking because we
want to like bug the clients,right?
(03:17):
No. We're not going to ask themfor something that they don't
need.
So we're always on the client
side.
We won't ask anything that we
don't need, but sometimes there'sjust no way around things.
And even though it is tricky andannoying, we totally get it, but
we need it.
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Okay, so let's maybe start at thebeginning of the mortgage process
and kind of understanding themortgage journey.
(03:37):
So for Emerald Mortgages, we arecompletely virtual.
And that means that we're nevergoing to be client facing.
I think that's what makes usreally good at our jobs and able
to kind of pump out the capacitythat we do.
And I think that's something thatmaybe clients don't really know is
that you can actually get amortgage from the comfort of your
(04:01):
own home and even you and I likewe're in different provinces and
so for us like this workingrelationship wouldn't really work
if we had to be in the same citywhich I'm so grateful for yeah
during the mortgage process thefirst thing we do is we do the
discovery call and that's where Italk to clients and kind of dive
deeper into their goals whatthey're looking to accomplish And
(04:22):
then how we're going to do that.
After the discovery call, that's
when you kind of hop in and youlet the clients know some of the
documents that they're going toneed.
So why don't you talk a little bitabout what we need for documents
and what type of clients requirethose documents?
documents?So the types of documents that we
request does depend on your typeof employment, whether you're self
(04:43):
-employed or you're just employedhourly salary.
So that does dictate what we needto collect from you.
So during your discovery calls,when you.
kind of figure out those details.
Also, when they fill out the
online application, we have a bitof insight into what we need to
collect.
But for the most part, it is tax
documents to show your incomehistory for the past two years.
So that's T4s, notice ofassessments, which are pretty easy
(05:04):
to access from your CRA portal.
Somewhere that we get a bit of
challenges is when we need tocollect T1s.
That's primarily for self-employed.
people, or if you have any realestate properties that you claim
rental income on, that piece isdefinitely a non -negotiable for
lenders.
They need to collect that, but it
is harder for clients to get ifthey don't use an accountant.
Yeah.
But I think that's always
(05:25):
something that it's worth havingorganized, especially if you are
self -employed or claim realestate income, having those
accessible really makes thingseasier.
Yeah.
So, okay.
So for somebody who's a regularemployee, they get a T4, we're
basically looking for just thelast two years of T4 income and
then pay stubs, letter ofemployment.
And if it's a really clean filelike that, that's probably all we
(05:48):
need to prove their income, right?Yeah.
So that's pretty easy.
And then...
Down payments verification, wejust need to collect three months
bank statements of the accountsthat are holding the funds.
If there's any large deposits, wemight have to collect more bank
statements.
But if you have a savings account
and have been saving for a whileand it's just been sitting there,
it's pretty easy to verify withthree months bank statements.
(06:11):
Yeah.
And then with self -employed
income verification, we're lookingfor two years of T1 generals,
corporate financials.
articles of incorporation if
they're incorporated, right?And then for sole proprietors, is
there anything different that welook for?
for?It depends on the lender.
For the most part, they can justuse the T1s.
You'll claim it as businessincome.
Sometimes they'll require a yearto date what you're expected to
(06:32):
make this year and ensure thatthat's still on track.
But it does depend on the lender.
Some are more lenient than others.
But definitely if you're just asole proprietor, the T1s are the
main piece that lenders need.
Yeah.
And in our business, like we'veworked out a way that if clients
do work with an accountant, likewe are more than happy to.
(06:55):
And actually, I think we probablyprefer to talk directly.
talk directly.
It makes things so much easier
than all the back and forth andmaking sure we get the right
stuff.
Accountants can just send it
through in one go and they haveeasy access to those documents.
So it makes it a lot easier.
Yeah.
The one thing that I will say wasa little bit alarming was there's
been a couple of times that we'vereached out to these accountants
(07:16):
and normally it's a free thing.
They just hand them over, but
we've had accountants thatactually charge a fee for this.
Yeah, which feels kind of silly inmy opinion.
I do understand it does take, youknow, a few minutes to collect the
documents.
But in terms of client experience,
if my accountant did that as afree service, I would so
appreciate it.
And it definitely increases my
loyalty to them.
Just makes everything easier for
the client, which is the priority.
(07:38):
Yeah.
I think having an accountant,whether you're self -employed or
just an employee is importantbecause they know things that we
don't as consumers and workaroundsand ways to kind of work the tax
system.
So if clients don't have an
accountant, I would highly suggestthat they do get one.
Yeah, definitely.
Especially if you have multiple
rental properties.
I'm not super knowledgeable on all
the tips and tricks, but theydefinitely have ways to reduce
(07:58):
your taxes and what you owe.
great insight they're smart like
that they're experts that's whyexactly yeah expert in numbers
yeah yes exactly and saving I knowlike my accountant is worth his
weight in gold and I absolutelylove the way that he's able to
save me on my taxes it's greatyeah makes a big difference at the
end of the year come tax seasonyeah let's talk about a few
(08:20):
different income streams thatclients don't know can actually
like that they're experts that'swhy exactly yeah expert in numbers
yeah yes exactly and saving I knowlike my accountant is worth his
weight in gold and I absolutelylove the way that he's able to
save me on my taxes it's greatmakes a big difference at the end
of the year come tax season let'stalk about a few different income
(08:43):
streams that clients don't knowcan actually work towards their
purchasing power.
So childcare benefit is one.
So if clients are receiving fundsfor their children, they can
actually use that as verifiedincome.
So do you know the guidelines?behind the ages?
I think it definitelydifferentiates between lender, but
as long as they're under 15.
Yeah, if they're under 15, they'll
be able to use the income thatyou're getting from CCB.
(09:06):
15, they'll be able to use theincome that you're getting from
CCB.
They do require that we give them
their date of birth to confirmthat.
Sometimes they'll ask for a birthcertificate or something else
confirming their date of birth.
But if they're under 15, we can
use that income towards yourqualification.
Yeah, and then so all we're goingto need is the child care benefit
statement and then, yeah, theirbirthdates.
I know there's been times whereclients have been skeptical, I
guess, to hand over theirchildren's birthdate, but that's
why we need it.
We need to just confirm that the
children are going to be receivingthat benefit.
I think they want to see it forthe term of the loan.
(09:28):
Yeah, which makes sense.
Like they're expected that you are
getting that income.
And if that changes throughout
your mortgage term, they do needto be aware of that.
It makes sense.
It is kind of weird having to give
your kids date of birth to get amortgage, but that's why we need
it.
That's why we need it.
Yeah.
What other types of income can we
use to qualify a client?a client?
Other than just employment income,we can use investment income,
(09:49):
income from rental properties,pensions, any pensions.
whether they're private pensionsor Canadian pension plan, CBP.
Similarly to that, we can also useOAS income.
So all those together definitelymake a big difference.
Yeah.
And we can also use child support.
use child support.
We can use spousal support.
Stuff that you might nottraditionally consider income, we
can use.
So maternity.
Right.
Like maternity leave income we can
actually use as long as we have areturn to work date.
(10:12):
And I think there's a lot ofpeople that maybe put the brakes
on purchasing because they want tobe back to work, but we can
actually use their income withoutthem being back to work just yet.
Yeah.
Well, it might be like reduced,
like if you can only use a certainpercentage of the income, like it
still still makes a difference andwe can still use that income for
sure.
Yeah, rental income for properties
that are not yet rented.
(10:33):
So if somebody is going to rent
out their current owner occupiedand purchase another property, we
can actually use markets rent,which means the property doesn't
have to be rented yet, but anappraiser comes out, which is also
an additional cost to the client,appraises the... market value of
the rent.
(10:53):
So they look and see, well, what's
renting in the community for asimilar property.
And then usually we can use about50 % of that income to qualify the
client.
Now, if the client has a lease
agreement in place, like for theproperty, once they move out, then
(11:13):
we can usually use a little bitmore of that.
But I don't think a lot of clientsknow they have options that way.
that way.
Yeah.
And that makes a big difference inyour borrowing power, just being
able to account for that.
And that's an extra, let's say $2
,000 a month in income that we canuse on your application.
And so it definitely helps.
Okay.
So for your down payment, we didtalk about it a little bit, but
(11:38):
there are different ways thatclients can.
Access a down payment.
Do you want to talk a little bit
about what that looks like?Yeah, so it can come from your own
resources, which I think is whatwe most often see.
People have just been saving fromemployment income or investment
income.
But another way that I feel most
people aren't.
aware of is that you can have
(12:00):
gifted down payment funds, butthey do have to be from an
immediate family member.
So your parents, grandparents,
aunt or uncle, lenders don'taccept it from, you know, family
friends or anything like that.
But if you have a family member
that is gifting you some downpayment funds, we can definitely
use that.
It's pretty minimal what they ask
for.
(12:20):
minimal what they ask for.
At that point, right?Like it's just the gifted down
payment letter.
Yeah.
So each lender has a personalizedgift letter template, which just
asks for basic information on thegifter and how much they'll be
gifting you.
It does also explicitly say that
you're not expected to repay it.
That's a big part of it is that
it's not a loan.
It's a gift.
(12:40):
Right.
You're not expected to repay it.
So yeah, we just need that giftletter signed by your family
member and you.
And then we just need confirmation
that the funds have been depositedinto your account.
There have been times where, youknow, the gifted funds aren't
coming closer to the closing date.
So in that case, if they're not
being transferred yet, we can alsotypically use just a bank
statement from the gifter'saccount showing that the funds are
(13:03):
available.
So it is a pretty easy way to
verify down payment funds.
Yeah.
One big tip that I have is ifyou're planning on purchasing
within the next three, fourmonths, do your best not to move
your down payment funds around.
This will make our job easier,
obviously, but also your jobeasier too, because if you're
transferring this money around,it's showing up in your bank
statements as large deposits andlenders need to trace the source
(13:26):
of those deposits for the fullthree months.
Rather than just sending us threemonths of one account bank
statements, we might have tocollect multiple accounts showing
where that money has been.
And it can quickly turn into a
pile of paperwork and verycomplicated.
So that's probably my biggest tipis obviously, you know, you're
preparing to buy a home, figureout which accounts that you want
to hold your down payment funds inand try not to touch it for the
(13:46):
three months leading up to it.
It will make the process so much
easier.
Yeah, that's great advice.
So these are kind of all of thethings that go on in the back end.
Like when we're forward facingwith clients, it is a pretty
streamlined process.
So they do the discovery call, we
do the application, we get all thedocuments, and then I break down
(14:06):
exactly what the clients are pre-approved for, break it down in a
way that's understandable forthem.
So we do spreadsheets andbudgeting.
I don't ever want a client to behoused for, and it's something
that I've said before because I'vebeen in that position.
So making sure that clients arefully aware of the cost of owning
a home is huge.
(14:27):
And that goes pretty far in our
process.
That way, when clients are putting
in an offer, they know what toexpect.
They know that this is going to beX amount of dollars per month with
the property taxes and then anidea of what utilities could look
like.
I think it just creates more
(14:48):
confident buyers from our side.
things.
Yeah.
Another piece to that is closing
costs.
I feel, especially first -time
homebuyers, aren't always aware ofsome extra fees that you'll need
to pay when buying a home.
So that's lawyer fees, property
transfer tax, if it's applicable,as well as an appraisal, which can
vary from $300 to $500.
So I think it's great that we kind
of front load that before we movealong in the process.
(15:09):
So it's not a surprise askingclients to foot a $500 appraisal.
when they weren't aware orplanning for that.
well as an appraisal, Yeah.
And something else clients don't
realize is that, you know, aresidential appraisal is a lot
different than an acreage.
When the appraiser has to go out
(15:29):
to the acreage, they actually puta fee on that.
So that's why they can go.
I've actually seen over 500 on
appraisals.
Yeah.
If it's a unique property, it candefinitely boost up that price.
Just less comparables.
And it's just a harder job for the
appraiser.
Okay.
So we have a couple commonmisconceptions here.
One of them is that you need aperfect score.
get approved.
Do you know the lowest score that
(15:49):
we've gotten an approval on?I don't know the exact number, but
I'm thinking definitely under 650.
Yeah, maybe like 630.
I was thinking even closer to like600.
So I think clients that are kindof waiting to build their credit,
they should hop on a call quicklybecause there have been times
where credit scores have increasedjust by working with a credit
(16:11):
specialist.
And sometimes there's things
reporting on your credit thataren't supposed to be there.
And so working with somebody whoknows how to work that system is
really important.
Do you have any misconceptions or
myths?that you've heard about mortgages
on your side?Maybe not mortgages in particular,
but maybe mortgage brokers.
I feel like most people who have
(16:31):
never worked with a broker, theydon't realize that it doesn't cost
them anything to work with us.
So there really should be no
reason that you don't have amortgage broker.
If you're just going into a bankand getting a mortgage, you're
limited to their products, whichisn't necessarily... the best fit
for you.
But by working with a mortgage
broker, we have access to all thelenders plus additional monoline
lenders.
Like I said, it costs you nothing
(16:53):
to have access to all these otherlenders.
So we get paid by a finder's feefrom these lenders.
But at the end of the day, westill work for you and you don't
pay us anything.
That's so funny that you bring
that up.
It's true.
I think years ago you had loyaltywith a bank and that meant that
the bank was going to be loyal toyou.
(17:14):
That's not the case.
Definitely not.
They're not reaching out to peopleto say, hey, you know, if you
break your loan and switchlenders, you're going to save
thousands, right?Yeah, no. Banks have no loyalty to
you.
have no to you.
No. And the other thing is thatthey're punching the clock.
Like, I don't really want to talkdown about bankers specifically,
but they work for the bank.
Like they're in the business of
(17:35):
serving the bank where that's notour reality.
Like we're here to serve theclient and that's how we build
business.
Right.
thing Like exactly.
Like we're such a referral based
business that.
It is really in our best interest
to find what works best for youand prioritize your needs rather
than, you know, our own agenda andpushing products that aren't
necessarily a fit for you.
Yeah.
And the other thing is timing,right?
(17:57):
Like we are somewhat bound tobanker hours when it comes to
submission, but we're working allthe time.
So if there's a client that.
you know, works a different
schedule and isn't able to hop ona call till eight o 'clock at
night, like we can help them at abank.
I mean, they're not really openthat late.
Not that I know of anyways, I feellike they're eight to four, nine
to four, maybe.
(18:18):
Yeah.
Well, and to circle back to likeour solely virtual process that
allows us to be more flexiblebecause yeah, we do work with the
banks during traditional.
business hours, but a lot of
client communication is done afterhours because we know that they
have nine to five jobs and can'talways hop on a call.
So just having that virtual aspectand not needing clients to come
into an office or something makesit more flexible for them too.
(18:39):
Well, and having the applicationright at their fingertips, the
application right at theirfingertips, right?
Like they're able to fill it outon their terms, on their timeline.
Granted, we don't love to haveapplications sitting in limbo,
but... I mean, if need be, theycan and they can hop on it when
it's comfortable for them.
Totally.
So another misconception that Ihear often from self -employed
people is, well, they can't get amortgage because they haven't been
(19:02):
qualified in the traditional sensewhen it comes to a major bank.
So a lot of people think that theycan't get a mortgage.
Well, that's not true.
I think probably self -employed
clients are my favorite ones towork with.
Number one, because they thinkoutside of the box.
You know, they're entrepreneursusually.
I mean, they're working forthemselves.
so they've got to have some kindof like skin in the game and when
(19:25):
it comes to thinking aboutfinances I find that they
generally think a little bitdifferently and they really come
to us because The bank hasprobably said no, or, you know,
you need to claim more money, butwe have different lender
guidelines that allow us toservice business for self clients
that don't fit into regular banklending.
know, Yeah.
I find a lot of self -employed
people also really good at gettingus documents just because they are
(19:46):
in charge of all of their, youknow, paying themselves and
everything.
So they are generally more
knowledgeable on tax documents,which is super helpful.
But yeah, like you said, we haveaccess to a lot of specific
programs for self -employed peoplethat doesn't put you at a
disadvantage, which I don't thinkthe big banks really prioritize
self -employed people.
I think you're right.
think you're right.
I think that they're missing an
opportunity there, which I'm gladthat we... we can help those
(20:08):
clients.
Yeah, I'm not complaining.
No. Okay, so now we've workedthrough the process.
We've done the discovery call.
We've collected documents.
We've hopped on that strategy callwhere I've broken down the custom
proposal for the clients and gonethrough each of the dollar amounts
that they can expect to pay whenthey go to purchase their home.
And now the client has an acceptedoffer.
(20:29):
So they come to us.
The realtor generally will send us
their accepted offer.
And this is kind of when... we
really get to work.
And so when we go to submit to a
lender for final approval, What dowe need?
So we need the income documents,whether you're self -employed or
employed.
They also need to be current,
income documents, whether you'reself -employed or employed.
They also need to be current,right?
Yeah.
So lenders generally require that
(20:50):
they are within 30 days for theletter of employment and pay
stubs.
So it's possible, depending on
when we did your pre -approval andyour budget proposal, that we
might need to collect a fewupdated documents.
So yeah, we need the employmentincome.
documents as well as down paymentdocuments.
So again, we might need to getsome updated bank statements.
They do need to be the most recentthree months statements.
(21:12):
So a few updated documents there.
We generally provide a void check
for the account that your mortgagepayments are going to come from.
Well, I think at this point, someclients get a little bit antsy
because they're worried.
They're like, well, hey, you know
what?I already provided you that.
Why do you need it again?Right.
We're not asking just because.
(21:32):
It's fun for us.
Like we need these, we need these,right?
Yeah.
We don't love asking for these
documents twice.
It's definitely not ideal, but
when it comes to your pre-approval, we do need those
documents to ensure that it'saccurate.
So depending on when you find aproperty, we do need to collect
updated ones for the lender, butyeah, you know your budget and we
know that we can get it done witha lender because we had those
(21:54):
documents previously.
Right.
So, okay.
So we've got our accepted offer
and now we've collected all of theupdated documents if we need them.
And then we are submitting to thelenders, which is again,
virtually.
So everything is online, super
convenient.
And then basically once we have
the documents submitted, thelender comes back to us with what
they call a conditional approval.
(22:15):
And do you want to talk a little
bit about what that means?that means?
Yeah.
So once the lender agrees to
proceed with the mortgage, yourconditional approval consists of
like a personalized list ofconditions that we need to satisfy
in order for the mortgage to fund.
So that might be some follow -up
requests about your employment.
Generally, they will do a verbal
confirmation with your employer.
That's a common follow -up.
They might inquire about somelarge deposits in your down
(22:37):
payment statements.
So generally any deposits over $2
,000 that aren't obviously like apayroll deposit, they will need to
see.
where those funds came from, just
to ensure that they are still fromyour accounts and that it is your
money that's just beingtransferred around.
And this is where the appraisalcondition would come in likely as
well.
Yeah.
Yes, that too.
Like I said, it's personalized.
(22:57):
So it is just the lender doingtheir due diligence and checking
all the boxes so that we can fundthis properly.
And then once we satisfy all theconditions, it's pretty much done.
Well, yeah, and then you removeyour condition of finance.
And then that means, I guess, thatthe property is now sold.
So there are times where asbrokers, we have to remove that
condition of finance prior tobeing broker complete.
(23:17):
And depending on the client, thereis a level of risk involved.
But we're always going to makesure that the client knows what
that risk is.
And I mean, there's times where...
probably the condition of financehad been removed.
Maybe it was a little riskier thanothers, but making sure that the
clients know what that looks like.
Yeah.
In an ideal world, we're brokercomplete before your condition of
financing day, but especially whenyou find a really good property
(23:42):
and you really want it, we want tostay within that deadline of you
still being able to removesubjects.
And sometimes that comes withrisk, but yeah, we always let you
know that there is risk involved,but we wouldn't advise you to
remove subjects if we weren'tconfident.
that we could get something done.
Now that we're talking a little
bit about risk, that we're talkinga little bit about risk, as
(24:05):
mortgage brokers, we are obligatedby law to offer something called
mortgage protection insurance.
And I think that also catches some
clients off guard becauseobviously we're not insurance
experts.
I'm not here to sell you insurance
and neither are you, but it issomething that is important.
I think that we talk a little bitabout mortgage protection
insurance.
It's probably one of the easiest
(24:27):
ways to qualify for mortgageprotection.
The process of it is reallystreamlined and basically you
apply or you waive it and the feesare really, really manageable.
I mean, comparatively to otherproducts.
And so clients have the optionjust once their commitment comes
through to either accept ordecline the mortgage protection
insurance.
And what it's going to do is if
something happens, you know,there's life and disability
(24:49):
portions to it.
But what the client gets to do is
decide, hey, do I want the lifeportion or the disability portion
or both?clients And if they are unable to
make their mortgage payment for anumber of different reasons, then
they are actually covered, which Ithink.
is pretty cool.
And I'm grateful that we get to
offer that to clients.
to clients.
(25:09):
Yeah, it's a great product andthey have the free 30 day trial
period.
So if anything, if you're still
exploring insurance products, it'sa good thing to have in the
meantime, just to make sure thatyou're covered until you find
something that better suits you oryou talk to an insurance broker.
But there really is no commitmentto continue with it if you find
something better.
(25:30):
So there isn't really a downside
to applying for it.
isn't really a it.
Yeah, because there's the free 30days and then there's a 60 day.
money back guarantee.
That's pretty great.
What's your go -to productivityhack at work?
Other than coffee, than coffee,definitely my calendar.
I put everything in there.
I write everything out or chances
are I might forget.
So I am very anal about making
(25:50):
sure I write everything down.
So I think our CRM definitely
helps with that.
Oh yeah.
Yeah.
Having our automated to -do list
to make sure that we don't forgetanything.
Yes.
That helps our productivity for
sure.
Yeah, our CRM is a huge part of
business.
Like there's so many times I'm
like, oh my gosh, that's right.
I had to do that or that.
(26:10):
It really keeps us on track.
What's your productivity hack?
I also have my calendar, which isa massive whiteboard that way.
I have a huge whiteboard overhere, which you can't see.
But having things written down forme is huge.
Setting goals and making sure thatI'm staying on the forefront of
technology because technology ishuge.
One of the biggest things that wedo our clients is the monthly
(26:36):
digest that goes out so not onlyare we facilitating the funding
process we're staying with theclient after funding and so each
one of our client gets a digesteach month that breaks down what
their property is currently worthany interest savings they
potentially have and it gives themaccess to current information each
month so it's sending out a digesteach month saying hey If you
wanted to break your mortgageright now, you could save X amount
(26:57):
of dollars by doing so.
Or it's like, no, you can't save
money.
So stay where you're at.
The other thing is it's showingequity.
where other thing is it's showingequity.
Clients don't realize, especiallyhere in Alberta, we are building
equity pretty quickly.
So it's giving clients just some
insight to their property as awhole.
as a whole.
Yeah, that's awesome.
And it's reassurance that we arekeeping an eye on your mortgage
(27:19):
behind the scenes.
another benefit of having a
mortgage broker.
Like the banks don't do that for
you.
No, they definitely don't.
And I feel like you're so good atlooking for these new tech things.
Yeah.
You're always coming to me with
like, Hey, I found this, I foundthis, this would be so great for
our clients.
So you're always thinking about.
what makes it easier for theclients, which I think is awesome.
Thank you.
you.
(27:39):
I love that side of the business.
That's probably what drives me is
like, what can we do to make itsimpler for the client?
How can we explain this in a waythat they understand so that
they're aware of not only theiroptions, but what they're getting
themselves into with a mortgage?Cause it's huge.
Like this is hundreds of thousandsof dollars, probably the biggest
loan you will ever have in yourlife.
(28:00):
So exactly.
It's a big step.
It's a big milestone too.
Yeah.
Oh yeah.
It definitely is.
So a couple of things that weintegrate into our business
obviously is our CRM, which ishuge.
We have like booking links.
We have our monthly digest that
goes out, but we also use a lot ofvideo.
And I think that clients canreally appreciate the video
because they can come back to it,right?
(28:21):
So we're sending out the signingpackage.
We're sending out a videoalongside it.
When I'm doing the budgetbreakdown and the custom proposal,
I'm sending a video with it sothat clients can.
have it at their fingertips.
They can revisit it.
They can go over it as many timesas they want.
Cause I know when I got my firstmortgage, I was just so flipping
(28:44):
excited that the guy said,whatever.
And I said, yep, sign here.
And then I didn't really know what
I was getting myself into.
Totally.
Yeah.
So for our clients, I think it's
wonderful because not only didthey know, but they might be
really excited.
And then when things have kind of
had time to settle, they can goback and look and say, Hey, this
(29:07):
is what this meant at that time.
the guy that time.
Yeah.
And while we appreciate the trust
and just blindly signing what wesend you, I think it's also a good
idea to be informed on what youare signing.
And that is the purpose of thevideo rather than just sending you
like seven documents to sign.
It comes with a video of me
(29:28):
walking you through.
each document and a brief overview
of what it is.
So including the commitment, kind
of go down where the numbers arelisted and where you need to sign
and prepayment privileges as well,where you can find information on
that.
But also as mortgage brokers, we
do have compliance documents thatwe need for regulators.
And I think rather than justsending those out and getting the
clients to sign it, it is niceletting them know exactly what
they're signing.
Yeah.
And I think the video is just sonice to be able to have that and
(29:51):
go over it.
And yeah, one thing that I didn't
talk about too was Emily.
So Emily is new to our team, but
she is definitely an asset and sheis behind the scenes as well.
Once a mortgage funds, she'sactually calling the clients seven
days after their mortgage funds,just to check in, make sure that
everything is buttoned up the wayit was supposed to.
And then also to make sure thatthe clients have a direct line to
(30:15):
somebody who can pick up the callif something comes up.
So that has been a wonderfuladdition to like Emerald
Mortgages.
as a whole the other thing she's
doing is she is facilitating anyintroductions to experts that we
haven't had an opportunity to doyet so of course we do the mpp and
the clients you know generallythey accept it but what we like to
do after they've accepted that isintroduce them to a financial
(30:37):
planner because you know we've putthem in the biggest liability of
their life and so you know we'vedone this on the debt side we want
to make sure that they havesomebody managing the asset side
and so she's calling and she'sdoing the introductions to anybody
that wants to have one of thosefree consultations and that has
been wonderful the other thing islike accountants right you know we
talk about how importantaccountants are to you know saving
(30:59):
money and taxes and so if thereever is an opportunity for a
referral that way she's able totalk to the clients and say hey
you know we noticed during yourapplication process that you don't
actually work with an accountantis that something that you would
be interested in doing and sofacilitating those expert
relationships Outside of just themortgage.
So we're kind of like a one -stopshop for everything that you need.
you need.
Yeah, definitely.
And those connections are reallyimportant because your mortgage
(31:21):
can definitely be used as afinancial tool.
So I think once you get amortgage, if you haven't spoken to
a financial planner, that'sdefinitely a conversation that you
should have.
And yeah, we definitely have some
great partners that we refer to.
Yeah, we have a relationship with
them and we're not just handingyou to some Joe Blow, with them
and we're not just handing you tosome Joe Blow, right?
(31:42):
Yeah.
You know, the thing is like
every... part of the process is soimportant having the right lawyer
is like gold and we know thisbecause we have worked with some
pretty wonderful lawyers and let'sjust say some not so wonderful
lawyers yes And as like, that'sthe last step in your mortgage,
like that also needs to goproperly and seamlessly so that we
can fund on time and that's out ofour control.
(32:02):
So we definitely have ourpreferred lawyers to work with.
Yeah, I know.
Shout out Christina.
Yes.
But yeah, no, it's definitely like
we can make or break a deal basedon the lawyer involved at the very
end of a transaction, right?It can be smooth sailing all the
way up until that date.
And we actually ran into this, I
think, twice last week.
(32:23):
It was wild.
Yeah.
Yeah.
On the same day, something was inthe air.
But I will acknowledge thatsometimes we don't make it easy on
lawyers because we get them themortgage instructions.
was in the And it is a reallyquick turnaround.
So just so everybody knows,lawyers want to have them about 10
(32:43):
business days before your closingdate.
But there have definitely beentimes where we have like cut that
in half and lawyers have stillbeen able to get it done.
So they play a huge part in theprocess.
Well, that is a wrap.
And I'm so grateful that you came
on to chat a little bit more aboutthe behind the scenes process
because you're not as forwardfacing.
(33:04):
but you are such a huge part ofthe business.
It's nice to hear your voice andget your expertise.
So thank you, Kat, for joining uson Alberta Bound today.
Yeah, thanks for having me.
It's been great.
Always a pleasure working withyou.
Welcome to this episode of theAlberta Bound podcast.
(00:03):
My name is Sarah Hainsworth,mortgage broker and your guide to
building wealth through realestate in Alberta.
Today we're lifting the curtain onwhat actually happens behind the
scenes of a mortgage.
I'm joined by Kat, my fulfillment
specialist and the secret weaponwho gets deals across the finish
line.
If you've ever been confused by
mortgage paperwork or wonderedwhat happens behind the scenes,
(00:24):
you're not going to want to missthis episode.
Welcome to the Alberta Boundpodcast.
My name is Sarah Hainsworth,mortgage broker and your guide to
investing in real estate here inAlberta.
Today, I have the pleasure ofspeaking with Kat.
And if you've ever wondered whatgives my mortgage business its
edge, it's Kat.
She's our fulfillment specialist
(00:45):
and the driving force behind thescenes.
Kat, do you want to just hop onand say hello?
Hi.
Hi. Thanks for having me.
I'm so glad you're here.
I mean, you're behind the scenes
all the time, but it's nice tokind of put you in the forefront
of the business because You reallydo a lot behind the scenes.
And so, yeah, I'm happy to haveyou on today.
Yeah, thank you.
So Kat works behind the scenes of
the business and she, like Imentioned, is the fulfillment
(01:07):
specialist.
So why don't you tell everybody
what that means, like what yourjob kind of entails?
Yeah, so basically I make sure wecollect all the documents that the
lender is going to need throughoutthe process, which can get... a
little complicated and kind ofheavy, but we try to keep it as
simple as possible.
Lenders do have very specific
guidelines.
So my job is basically to make
sure that we stay within thoseguidelines and communicate with
(01:29):
them throughout the process on howwe can get the mortgage funded and
show them all the confirmationthat they need.
Well, I don't think people reallyknow how much goes into the behind
the scenes parts of it like thedocument collection is probably
the most tedious part of doingmortgages definitely yeah and
you're the one that's in therekind of in the weeds I think your
job is in the forefront, eventhough I'm kind of forward facing
(01:53):
because you're in the background,like you're doing a ton of work
behind the scenes.
you're in the background, like
you're doing a ton of work behindthe scenes.
And we don't always share thatwith clients because I can get
pretty tedious and we don't wantto worry everybody.
So I know.
know.
Right.
Well, and that's the thing is you
do such a good job of giving likewhite glove service that clients
don't actually know that sometimeswe're like ducks on water and our
feet are going underneath.
But on the top, we're calm, cool
(02:14):
and collected.
Yeah.
So yeah.
I really appreciate that with you.
Yeah.
So on this episode, we're going to
demystify the mortgage process,squash common misconceptions, and
then kind of talk a little bitabout lender guidelines that you
might not know about.
Let's start with an opener
question.
So what's one thing you wish
everyone understood beforestarting the mortgage process?
(02:35):
So the mortgage process can bepretty complex from start to
finish, whether clients see thatside of it or not.
There are a lot of little thingsthat go into getting the approval.
One of the major things beingdocument collection.
So something I wish everybody knewwas that you should definitely
talk to your mortgage brokerbefore going shopping.
to obviously solidify your budgetand also so we can start
(02:56):
collecting everything that we needto ensure a smoother process and
just less stress for everybodyinvolved.
Because like I said, it is kind oftedious getting all those
documents and most people, ittakes them a bit of time to locate
them, but being prepared, I thinkis the best.
the best.
We're not just asking because we
want to like bug the clients,right?
(03:17):
No. We're not going to ask themfor something that they don't
need.
So we're always on the client
side.
We won't ask anything that we
don't need, but sometimes there'sjust no way around things.
And even though it is tricky andannoying, we totally get it, but
we need it.
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Okay, so let's maybe start at thebeginning of the mortgage process
and kind of understanding themortgage journey.
(03:37):
So for Emerald Mortgages, we arecompletely virtual.
And that means that we're nevergoing to be client facing.
I think that's what makes usreally good at our jobs and able
to kind of pump out the capacitythat we do.
And I think that's something thatmaybe clients don't really know is
that you can actually get amortgage from the comfort of your
(04:01):
own home and even you and I likewe're in different provinces and
so for us like this workingrelationship wouldn't really work
if we had to be in the same citywhich I'm so grateful for yeah
during the mortgage process thefirst thing we do is we do the
discovery call and that's where Italk to clients and kind of dive
deeper into their goals whatthey're looking to accomplish And
(04:22):
then how we're going to do that.
After the discovery call, that's
when you kind of hop in and youlet the clients know some of the
documents that they're going toneed.
So why don't you talk a little bitabout what we need for documents
and what type of clients requirethose documents?
documents?So the types of documents that we
request does depend on your typeof employment, whether you're self
(04:43):
-employed or you're just employedhourly salary.
So that does dictate what we needto collect from you.
So during your discovery calls,when you.
kind of figure out those details.
Also, when they fill out the
online application, we have a bitof insight into what we need to
collect.
But for the most part, it is tax
documents to show your incomehistory for the past two years.
So that's T4s, notice ofassessments, which are pretty easy
(05:04):
to access from your CRA portal.
Somewhere that we get a bit of
challenges is when we need tocollect T1s.
That's primarily for self-employed.
people, or if you have any realestate properties that you claim
rental income on, that piece isdefinitely a non -negotiable for
lenders.
They need to collect that, but it
is harder for clients to get ifthey don't use an accountant.
Yeah.
But I think that's always
(05:25):
something that it's worth havingorganized, especially if you are
self -employed or claim realestate income, having those
accessible really makes thingseasier.
Yeah.
So, okay.
So for somebody who's a regularemployee, they get a T4, we're
basically looking for just thelast two years of T4 income and
then pay stubs, letter ofemployment.
And if it's a really clean filelike that, that's probably all we
(05:48):
need to prove their income, right?Yeah.
So that's pretty easy.
And then...
Down payments verification, wejust need to collect three months
bank statements of the accountsthat are holding the funds.
If there's any large deposits, wemight have to collect more bank
statements.
But if you have a savings account
and have been saving for a whileand it's just been sitting there,
it's pretty easy to verify withthree months bank statements.
(06:11):
Yeah.
And then with self -employed
income verification, we're lookingfor two years of T1 generals,
corporate financials.
articles of incorporation if
they're incorporated, right?And then for sole proprietors, is
there anything different that welook for?
for?It depends on the lender.
For the most part, they can justuse the T1s.
You'll claim it as businessincome.
Sometimes they'll require a yearto date what you're expected to
(06:32):
make this year and ensure thatthat's still on track.
But it does depend on the lender.
Some are more lenient than others.
But definitely if you're just asole proprietor, the T1s are the
main piece that lenders need.
Yeah.
And in our business, like we'veworked out a way that if clients
do work with an accountant, likewe are more than happy to.
(06:55):
And actually, I think we probablyprefer to talk directly.
talk directly.
It makes things so much easier
than all the back and forth andmaking sure we get the right
stuff.
Accountants can just send it
through in one go and they haveeasy access to those documents.
So it makes it a lot easier.
Yeah.
The one thing that I will say wasa little bit alarming was there's
been a couple of times that we'vereached out to these accountants
(07:16):
and normally it's a free thing.
They just hand them over, but
we've had accountants thatactually charge a fee for this.
Yeah, which feels kind of silly inmy opinion.
I do understand it does take, youknow, a few minutes to collect the
documents.
But in terms of client experience,
if my accountant did that as afree service, I would so
appreciate it.
And it definitely increases my
loyalty to them.
Just makes everything easier for
the client, which is the priority.
(07:38):
Yeah.
I think having an accountant,whether you're self -employed or
just an employee is importantbecause they know things that we
don't as consumers and workaroundsand ways to kind of work the tax
system.
So if clients don't have an
accountant, I would highly suggestthat they do get one.
Yeah, definitely.
Especially if you have multiple
rental properties.
I'm not super knowledgeable on all
the tips and tricks, but theydefinitely have ways to reduce
(07:58):
your taxes and what you owe.
great insight they're smart like
that they're experts that's whyexactly yeah expert in numbers
yeah yes exactly and saving I knowlike my accountant is worth his
weight in gold and I absolutelylove the way that he's able to
save me on my taxes it's greatyeah makes a big difference at the
end of the year come tax seasonyeah let's talk about a few
(08:20):
different income streams thatclients don't know can actually
like that they're experts that'swhy exactly yeah expert in numbers
yeah yes exactly and saving I knowlike my accountant is worth his
weight in gold and I absolutelylove the way that he's able to
save me on my taxes it's greatmakes a big difference at the end
of the year come tax season let'stalk about a few different income
(08:43):
streams that clients don't knowcan actually work towards their
purchasing power.
So childcare benefit is one.
So if clients are receiving fundsfor their children, they can
actually use that as verifiedincome.
So do you know the guidelines?behind the ages?
I think it definitelydifferentiates between lender, but
as long as they're under 15.
Yeah, if they're under 15, they'll
be able to use the income thatyou're getting from CCB.
(09:06):
15, they'll be able to use theincome that you're getting from
CCB.
They do require that we give them
their date of birth to confirmthat.
Sometimes they'll ask for a birthcertificate or something else
confirming their date of birth.
But if they're under 15, we can
use that income towards yourqualification.
Yeah, and then so all we're goingto need is the child care benefit
statement and then, yeah, theirbirthdates.
I know there's been times whereclients have been skeptical, I
guess, to hand over theirchildren's birthdate, but that's
why we need it.
We need to just confirm that the
children are going to be receivingthat benefit.
I think they want to see it forthe term of the loan.
(09:28):
Yeah, which makes sense.
Like they're expected that you are
getting that income.
And if that changes throughout
your mortgage term, they do needto be aware of that.
It makes sense.
It is kind of weird having to give
your kids date of birth to get amortgage, but that's why we need
it.
That's why we need it.
Yeah.
What other types of income can we
use to qualify a client?a client?
Other than just employment income,we can use investment income,
(09:49):
income from rental properties,pensions, any pensions.
whether they're private pensionsor Canadian pension plan, CBP.
Similarly to that, we can also useOAS income.
So all those together definitelymake a big difference.
Yeah.
And we can also use child support.
use child support.
We can use spousal support.
Stuff that you might nottraditionally consider income, we
can use.
So maternity.
Right.
Like maternity leave income we can
actually use as long as we have areturn to work date.
(10:12):
And I think there's a lot ofpeople that maybe put the brakes
on purchasing because they want tobe back to work, but we can
actually use their income withoutthem being back to work just yet.
Yeah.
Well, it might be like reduced,
like if you can only use a certainpercentage of the income, like it
still still makes a difference andwe can still use that income for
sure.
Yeah, rental income for properties
that are not yet rented.
(10:33):
So if somebody is going to rent
out their current owner occupiedand purchase another property, we
can actually use markets rent,which means the property doesn't
have to be rented yet, but anappraiser comes out, which is also
an additional cost to the client,appraises the... market value of
the rent.
(10:53):
So they look and see, well, what's
renting in the community for asimilar property.
And then usually we can use about50 % of that income to qualify the
client.
Now, if the client has a lease
agreement in place, like for theproperty, once they move out, then
(11:13):
we can usually use a little bitmore of that.
But I don't think a lot of clientsknow they have options that way.
that way.
Yeah.
And that makes a big difference inyour borrowing power, just being
able to account for that.
And that's an extra, let's say $2
,000 a month in income that we canuse on your application.
And so it definitely helps.
Okay.
So for your down payment, we didtalk about it a little bit, but
(11:38):
there are different ways thatclients can.
Access a down payment.
Do you want to talk a little bit
about what that looks like?Yeah, so it can come from your own
resources, which I think is whatwe most often see.
People have just been saving fromemployment income or investment
income.
But another way that I feel most
people aren't.
aware of is that you can have
(12:00):
gifted down payment funds, butthey do have to be from an
immediate family member.
So your parents, grandparents,
aunt or uncle, lenders don'taccept it from, you know, family
friends or anything like that.
But if you have a family member
that is gifting you some downpayment funds, we can definitely
use that.
It's pretty minimal what they ask
for.
(12:20):
minimal what they ask for.
At that point, right?Like it's just the gifted down
payment letter.
Yeah.
So each lender has a personalizedgift letter template, which just
asks for basic information on thegifter and how much they'll be
gifting you.
It does also explicitly say that
you're not expected to repay it.
That's a big part of it is that
it's not a loan.
It's a gift.
(12:40):
Right.
You're not expected to repay it.
So yeah, we just need that giftletter signed by your family
member and you.
And then we just need confirmation
that the funds have been depositedinto your account.
There have been times where, youknow, the gifted funds aren't
coming closer to the closing date.
So in that case, if they're not
being transferred yet, we can alsotypically use just a bank
statement from the gifter'saccount showing that the funds are
(13:03):
available.
So it is a pretty easy way to
verify down payment funds.
Yeah.
One big tip that I have is ifyou're planning on purchasing
within the next three, fourmonths, do your best not to move
your down payment funds around.
This will make our job easier,
obviously, but also your jobeasier too, because if you're
transferring this money around,it's showing up in your bank
statements as large deposits andlenders need to trace the source
(13:26):
of those deposits for the fullthree months.
Rather than just sending us threemonths of one account bank
statements, we might have tocollect multiple accounts showing
where that money has been.
And it can quickly turn into a
pile of paperwork and verycomplicated.
So that's probably my biggest tipis obviously, you know, you're
preparing to buy a home, figureout which accounts that you want
to hold your down payment funds inand try not to touch it for the
(13:46):
three months leading up to it.
It will make the process so much
easier.
Yeah, that's great advice.
So these are kind of all of thethings that go on in the back end.
Like when we're forward facingwith clients, it is a pretty
streamlined process.
So they do the discovery call, we
do the application, we get all thedocuments, and then I break down
(14:06):
exactly what the clients are pre-approved for, break it down in a
way that's understandable forthem.
So we do spreadsheets andbudgeting.
I don't ever want a client to behoused for, and it's something
that I've said before because I'vebeen in that position.
So making sure that clients arefully aware of the cost of owning
a home is huge.
(14:27):
And that goes pretty far in our
process.
That way, when clients are putting
in an offer, they know what toexpect.
They know that this is going to beX amount of dollars per month with
the property taxes and then anidea of what utilities could look
like.
I think it just creates more
(14:48):
confident buyers from our side.
things.
Yeah.
Another piece to that is closing
costs.
I feel, especially first -time
homebuyers, aren't always aware ofsome extra fees that you'll need
to pay when buying a home.
So that's lawyer fees, property
transfer tax, if it's applicable,as well as an appraisal, which can
vary from $300 to $500.
So I think it's great that we kind
of front load that before we movealong in the process.
(15:09):
So it's not a surprise askingclients to foot a $500 appraisal.
when they weren't aware orplanning for that.
well as an appraisal, Yeah.
And something else clients don't
realize is that, you know, aresidential appraisal is a lot
different than an acreage.
When the appraiser has to go out
(15:29):
to the acreage, they actually puta fee on that.
So that's why they can go.
I've actually seen over 500 on
appraisals.
Yeah.
If it's a unique property, it candefinitely boost up that price.
Just less comparables.
And it's just a harder job for the
appraiser.
Okay.
So we have a couple commonmisconceptions here.
One of them is that you need aperfect score.
get approved.
Do you know the lowest score that
(15:49):
we've gotten an approval on?I don't know the exact number, but
I'm thinking definitely under 650.
Yeah, maybe like 630.
I was thinking even closer to like600.
So I think clients that are kindof waiting to build their credit,
they should hop on a call quicklybecause there have been times
where credit scores have increasedjust by working with a credit
(16:11):
specialist.
And sometimes there's things
reporting on your credit thataren't supposed to be there.
And so working with somebody whoknows how to work that system is
really important.
Do you have any misconceptions or
myths?that you've heard about mortgages
on your side?Maybe not mortgages in particular,
but maybe mortgage brokers.
I feel like most people who have
(16:31):
never worked with a broker, theydon't realize that it doesn't cost
them anything to work with us.
So there really should be no
reason that you don't have amortgage broker.
If you're just going into a bankand getting a mortgage, you're
limited to their products, whichisn't necessarily... the best fit
for you.
But by working with a mortgage
broker, we have access to all thelenders plus additional monoline
lenders.
Like I said, it costs you nothing
(16:53):
to have access to all these otherlenders.
So we get paid by a finder's feefrom these lenders.
But at the end of the day, westill work for you and you don't
pay us anything.
That's so funny that you bring
that up.
It's true.
I think years ago you had loyaltywith a bank and that meant that
the bank was going to be loyal toyou.
(17:14):
That's not the case.
Definitely not.
They're not reaching out to peopleto say, hey, you know, if you
break your loan and switchlenders, you're going to save
thousands, right?Yeah, no. Banks have no loyalty to
you.
have no to you.
No. And the other thing is thatthey're punching the clock.
Like, I don't really want to talkdown about bankers specifically,
but they work for the bank.
Like they're in the business of
(17:35):
serving the bank where that's notour reality.
Like we're here to serve theclient and that's how we build
business.
Right.
thing Like exactly.
Like we're such a referral based
business that.
It is really in our best interest
to find what works best for youand prioritize your needs rather
than, you know, our own agenda andpushing products that aren't
necessarily a fit for you.
Yeah.
And the other thing is timing,right?
(17:57):
Like we are somewhat bound tobanker hours when it comes to
submission, but we're working allthe time.
So if there's a client that.
you know, works a different
schedule and isn't able to hop ona call till eight o 'clock at
night, like we can help them at abank.
I mean, they're not really openthat late.
Not that I know of anyways, I feellike they're eight to four, nine
to four, maybe.
(18:18):
Yeah.
Well, and to circle back to likeour solely virtual process that
allows us to be more flexiblebecause yeah, we do work with the
banks during traditional.
business hours, but a lot of
client communication is done afterhours because we know that they
have nine to five jobs and can'talways hop on a call.
So just having that virtual aspectand not needing clients to come
into an office or something makesit more flexible for them too.
(18:39):
Well, and having the applicationright at their fingertips, the
application right at theirfingertips, right?
Like they're able to fill it outon their terms, on their timeline.
Granted, we don't love to haveapplications sitting in limbo,
but... I mean, if need be, theycan and they can hop on it when
it's comfortable for them.
Totally.
So another misconception that Ihear often from self -employed
people is, well, they can't get amortgage because they haven't been
(19:02):
qualified in the traditional sensewhen it comes to a major bank.
So a lot of people think that theycan't get a mortgage.
Well, that's not true.
I think probably self -employed
clients are my favorite ones towork with.
Number one, because they thinkoutside of the box.
You know, they're entrepreneursusually.
I mean, they're working forthemselves.
so they've got to have some kindof like skin in the game and when
(19:25):
it comes to thinking aboutfinances I find that they
generally think a little bitdifferently and they really come
to us because The bank hasprobably said no, or, you know,
you need to claim more money, butwe have different lender
guidelines that allow us toservice business for self clients
that don't fit into regular banklending.
know, Yeah.
I find a lot of self -employed
people also really good at gettingus documents just because they are
(19:46):
in charge of all of their, youknow, paying themselves and
everything.
So they are generally more
knowledgeable on tax documents,which is super helpful.
But yeah, like you said, we haveaccess to a lot of specific
programs for self -employed peoplethat doesn't put you at a
disadvantage, which I don't thinkthe big banks really prioritize
self -employed people.
I think you're right.
think you're right.
I think that they're missing an
opportunity there, which I'm gladthat we... we can help those
(20:08):
clients.
Yeah, I'm not complaining.
No. Okay, so now we've workedthrough the process.
We've done the discovery call.
We've collected documents.
We've hopped on that strategy callwhere I've broken down the custom
proposal for the clients and gonethrough each of the dollar amounts
that they can expect to pay whenthey go to purchase their home.
And now the client has an acceptedoffer.
(20:29):
So they come to us.
The realtor generally will send us
their accepted offer.
And this is kind of when... we
really get to work.
And so when we go to submit to a
lender for final approval, What dowe need?
So we need the income documents,whether you're self -employed or
employed.
They also need to be current,
income documents, whether you'reself -employed or employed.
They also need to be current,right?
Yeah.
So lenders generally require that
(20:50):
they are within 30 days for theletter of employment and pay
stubs.
So it's possible, depending on
when we did your pre -approval andyour budget proposal, that we
might need to collect a fewupdated documents.
So yeah, we need the employmentincome.
documents as well as down paymentdocuments.
So again, we might need to getsome updated bank statements.
They do need to be the most recentthree months statements.
(21:12):
So a few updated documents there.
We generally provide a void check
for the account that your mortgagepayments are going to come from.
Well, I think at this point, someclients get a little bit antsy
because they're worried.
They're like, well, hey, you know
what?I already provided you that.
Why do you need it again?Right.
We're not asking just because.
(21:32):
It's fun for us.
Like we need these, we need these,right?
Yeah.
We don't love asking for these
documents twice.
It's definitely not ideal, but
when it comes to your pre-approval, we do need those
documents to ensure that it'saccurate.
So depending on when you find aproperty, we do need to collect
updated ones for the lender, butyeah, you know your budget and we
know that we can get it done witha lender because we had those
(21:54):
documents previously.
Right.
So, okay.
So we've got our accepted offer
and now we've collected all of theupdated documents if we need them.
And then we are submitting to thelenders, which is again,
virtually.
So everything is online, super
convenient.
And then basically once we have
the documents submitted, thelender comes back to us with what
they call a conditional approval.
(22:15):
And do you want to talk a little
bit about what that means?that means?
Yeah.
So once the lender agrees to
proceed with the mortgage, yourconditional approval consists of
like a personalized list ofconditions that we need to satisfy
in order for the mortgage to fund.
So that might be some follow -up
requests about your employment.
Generally, they will do a verbal
confirmation with your employer.
That's a common follow -up.
They might inquire about somelarge deposits in your down
(22:37):
payment statements.
So generally any deposits over $2
,000 that aren't obviously like apayroll deposit, they will need to
see.
where those funds came from, just
to ensure that they are still fromyour accounts and that it is your
money that's just beingtransferred around.
And this is where the appraisalcondition would come in likely as
well.
Yeah.
Yes, that too.
Like I said, it's personalized.
(22:57):
So it is just the lender doingtheir due diligence and checking
all the boxes so that we can fundthis properly.
And then once we satisfy all theconditions, it's pretty much done.
Well, yeah, and then you removeyour condition of finance.
And then that means, I guess, thatthe property is now sold.
So there are times where asbrokers, we have to remove that
condition of finance prior tobeing broker complete.
(23:17):
And depending on the client, thereis a level of risk involved.
But we're always going to makesure that the client knows what
that risk is.
And I mean, there's times where...
probably the condition of financehad been removed.
Maybe it was a little riskier thanothers, but making sure that the
clients know what that looks like.
Yeah.
In an ideal world, we're brokercomplete before your condition of
financing day, but especially whenyou find a really good property
(23:42):
and you really want it, we want tostay within that deadline of you
still being able to removesubjects.
And sometimes that comes withrisk, but yeah, we always let you
know that there is risk involved,but we wouldn't advise you to
remove subjects if we weren'tconfident.
that we could get something done.
Now that we're talking a little
bit about risk, that we're talkinga little bit about risk, as
(24:05):
mortgage brokers, we are obligatedby law to offer something called
mortgage protection insurance.
And I think that also catches some
clients off guard becauseobviously we're not insurance
experts.
I'm not here to sell you insurance
and neither are you, but it issomething that is important.
I think that we talk a little bitabout mortgage protection
insurance.
It's probably one of the easiest
(24:27):
ways to qualify for mortgageprotection.
The process of it is reallystreamlined and basically you
apply or you waive it and the feesare really, really manageable.
I mean, comparatively to otherproducts.
And so clients have the optionjust once their commitment comes
through to either accept ordecline the mortgage protection
insurance.
And what it's going to do is if
something happens, you know,there's life and disability
(24:49):
portions to it.
But what the client gets to do is
decide, hey, do I want the lifeportion or the disability portion
or both?clients And if they are unable to
make their mortgage payment for anumber of different reasons, then
they are actually covered, which Ithink.
is pretty cool.
And I'm grateful that we get to
offer that to clients.
to clients.
(25:09):
Yeah, it's a great product andthey have the free 30 day trial
period.
So if anything, if you're still
exploring insurance products, it'sa good thing to have in the
meantime, just to make sure thatyou're covered until you find
something that better suits you oryou talk to an insurance broker.
But there really is no commitmentto continue with it if you find
something better.
(25:30):
So there isn't really a downside
to applying for it.
isn't really a it.
Yeah, because there's the free 30days and then there's a 60 day.
money back guarantee.
That's pretty great.
What's your go -to productivityhack at work?
Other than coffee, than coffee,definitely my calendar.
I put everything in there.
I write everything out or chances
are I might forget.
So I am very anal about making
(25:50):
sure I write everything down.
So I think our CRM definitely
helps with that.
Oh yeah.
Yeah.
Having our automated to -do list
to make sure that we don't forgetanything.
Yes.
That helps our productivity for
sure.
Yeah, our CRM is a huge part of
business.
Like there's so many times I'm
like, oh my gosh, that's right.
I had to do that or that.
(26:10):
It really keeps us on track.
What's your productivity hack?
I also have my calendar, which isa massive whiteboard that way.
I have a huge whiteboard overhere, which you can't see.
But having things written down forme is huge.
Setting goals and making sure thatI'm staying on the forefront of
technology because technology ishuge.
One of the biggest things that wedo our clients is the monthly
(26:36):
digest that goes out so not onlyare we facilitating the funding
process we're staying with theclient after funding and so each
one of our client gets a digesteach month that breaks down what
their property is currently worthany interest savings they
potentially have and it gives themaccess to current information each
month so it's sending out a digesteach month saying hey If you
wanted to break your mortgageright now, you could save X amount
(26:57):
of dollars by doing so.
Or it's like, no, you can't save
money.
So stay where you're at.
The other thing is it's showingequity.
where other thing is it's showingequity.
Clients don't realize, especiallyhere in Alberta, we are building
equity pretty quickly.
So it's giving clients just some
insight to their property as awhole.
as a whole.
Yeah, that's awesome.
And it's reassurance that we arekeeping an eye on your mortgage
(27:19):
behind the scenes.
another benefit of having a
mortgage broker.
Like the banks don't do that for
you.
No, they definitely don't.
And I feel like you're so good atlooking for these new tech things.
Yeah.
You're always coming to me with
like, Hey, I found this, I foundthis, this would be so great for
our clients.
So you're always thinking about.
what makes it easier for theclients, which I think is awesome.
Thank you.
you.
(27:39):
I love that side of the business.
That's probably what drives me is
like, what can we do to make itsimpler for the client?
How can we explain this in a waythat they understand so that
they're aware of not only theiroptions, but what they're getting
themselves into with a mortgage?Cause it's huge.
Like this is hundreds of thousandsof dollars, probably the biggest
loan you will ever have in yourlife.
(28:00):
So exactly.
It's a big step.
It's a big milestone too.
Yeah.
Oh yeah.
It definitely is.
So a couple of things that weintegrate into our business
obviously is our CRM, which ishuge.
We have like booking links.
We have our monthly digest that
goes out, but we also use a lot ofvideo.
And I think that clients canreally appreciate the video
because they can come back to it,right?
(28:21):
So we're sending out the signingpackage.
We're sending out a videoalongside it.
When I'm doing the budgetbreakdown and the custom proposal,
I'm sending a video with it sothat clients can.
have it at their fingertips.
They can revisit it.
They can go over it as many timesas they want.
Cause I know when I got my firstmortgage, I was just so flipping
(28:44):
excited that the guy said,whatever.
And I said, yep, sign here.
And then I didn't really know what
I was getting myself into.
Totally.
Yeah.
So for our clients, I think it's
wonderful because not only didthey know, but they might be
really excited.
And then when things have kind of
had time to settle, they can goback and look and say, Hey, this
(29:07):
is what this meant at that time.
the guy that time.
Yeah.
And while we appreciate the trust
and just blindly signing what wesend you, I think it's also a good
idea to be informed on what youare signing.
And that is the purpose of thevideo rather than just sending you
like seven documents to sign.
It comes with a video of me
(29:28):
walking you through.
each document and a brief overview
of what it is.
So including the commitment, kind
of go down where the numbers arelisted and where you need to sign
and prepayment privileges as well,where you can find information on
that.
But also as mortgage brokers, we
do have compliance documents thatwe need for regulators.
And I think rather than justsending those out and getting the
clients to sign it, it is niceletting them know exactly what
they're signing.
Yeah.
And I think the video is just sonice to be able to have that and
(29:51):
go over it.
And yeah, one thing that I didn't
talk about too was Emily.
So Emily is new to our team, but
she is definitely an asset and sheis behind the scenes as well.
Once a mortgage funds, she'sactually calling the clients seven
days after their mortgage funds,just to check in, make sure that
everything is buttoned up the wayit was supposed to.
And then also to make sure thatthe clients have a direct line to
(30:15):
somebody who can pick up the callif something comes up.
So that has been a wonderfuladdition to like Emerald
Mortgages.
as a whole the other thing she's
doing is she is facilitating anyintroductions to experts that we
haven't had an opportunity to doyet so of course we do the mpp and
the clients you know generallythey accept it but what we like to
do after they've accepted that isintroduce them to a financial
(30:37):
planner because you know we've putthem in the biggest liability of
their life and so you know we'vedone this on the debt side we want
to make sure that they havesomebody managing the asset side
and so she's calling and she'sdoing the introductions to anybody
that wants to have one of thosefree consultations and that has
been wonderful the other thing islike accountants right you know we
talk about how importantaccountants are to you know saving
(30:59):
money and taxes and so if thereever is an opportunity for a
referral that way she's able totalk to the clients and say hey
you know we noticed during yourapplication process that you don't
actually work with an accountantis that something that you would
be interested in doing and sofacilitating those expert
relationships Outside of just themortgage.
So we're kind of like a one -stopshop for everything that you need.
you need.
Yeah, definitely.
And those connections are reallyimportant because your mortgage
(31:21):
can definitely be used as afinancial tool.
So I think once you get amortgage, if you haven't spoken to
a financial planner, that'sdefinitely a conversation that you
should have.
And yeah, we definitely have some
great partners that we refer to.
Yeah, we have a relationship with
them and we're not just handingyou to some Joe Blow, with them
and we're not just handing you tosome Joe Blow, right?
(31:42):
Yeah.
You know, the thing is like
every... part of the process is soimportant having the right lawyer
is like gold and we know thisbecause we have worked with some
pretty wonderful lawyers and let'sjust say some not so wonderful
lawyers yes And as like, that'sthe last step in your mortgage,
like that also needs to goproperly and seamlessly so that we
can fund on time and that's out ofour control.
(32:02):
So we definitely have ourpreferred lawyers to work with.
Yeah, I know.
Shout out Christina.
Yes.
But yeah, no, it's definitely like
we can make or break a deal basedon the lawyer involved at the very
end of a transaction, right?It can be smooth sailing all the
way up until that date.
And we actually ran into this, I
think, twice last week.
(32:23):
It was wild.
Yeah.
Yeah.
On the same day, something was inthe air.
But I will acknowledge thatsometimes we don't make it easy on
lawyers because we get them themortgage instructions.
was in the And it is a reallyquick turnaround.
So just so everybody knows,lawyers want to have them about 10
(32:43):
business days before your closingdate.
But there have definitely beentimes where we have like cut that
in half and lawyers have stillbeen able to get it done.
So they play a huge part in theprocess.
Well, that is a wrap.
And I'm so grateful that you came
on to chat a little bit more aboutthe behind the scenes process
because you're not as forwardfacing.
(33:04):
but you are such a huge part ofthe business.
It's nice to hear your voice andget your expertise.
So thank you, Kat, for joining uson Alberta Bound today.
Yeah, thanks for having me.
It's been great.
Always a pleasure working withyou.
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