Quote:
Originally Posted by bhunter
Does Canada have Fannie and Freddie?
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Why on earth would they need them? Home ownership in Canada is slightly higher than here. Very simply mortgage system, you want a mortgage you go to your bank, tell them where the house is and what the price is. They do all the title search - no extra charge. They check your credit worthiess - no extra charge. If they agree they offer a 5/25 mortgage usually although you could ask for shorter terms. What 5/25 means is that the mortgage is good for 25 years but the interest rate is re-negotiated every 5 years. Normally this is a benefit to both sides since the bank does not need a crystal ball and can offer good rates.
My mortgage in Ottawa had $600 total costs and was going along fine until Volker decided to fix the economy. Was told that the final 5 years would be 20% - ouch. I approached my bank and said I will pay off the balance but I need time to cash an insurance policy. Bank said OK, but the insurance company was flooded with similar requests.
Weeks pass and the bank phones and says "Mr. B if it would be possible to put some money down we would appreciate it." So I paid them what I could, about half. couple of weeks later when the check came from the insurance company I paid the balance and thanked the bank for their patience.
That was the same bank that when an error forced me to wire $200 up to cover a check I had already written, found their error, corrected my balance and put in another $100 as an apology. Can you see a big U.S. bank doing that?
So why would they ever need to have the taxpayer back loans made by crooked banks and agents out of sheer greed.
