# First Time Renewing Mortgage. Need Help.



## Darkain (Dec 25, 2010)

Hi. I am a long time forum reader, first time forum poster.

I am looking to renew my mortgage. I am looking for a 5 year closed variable rate mortgage on a 25 year amortization. I am currently on a five year fixed mortgage with Scotiabank and I absolutely hate dealing with their customer service. 

Why I hate Scotia:
My Scotiabank branch is in a busy mall. It is always crowded and nowhere to sit. I would rather deal with issues other the phone. They force me to have to book an appointment and come in. It is hard to get time off work and I only get a 30minute lunch. They have horrible hours of operation as well. (10am-3pm and closed on weekends) 


My IRD is around $4600. I am not interested in doing a blend & extend for the sake of possibly reducing the IRD. I have read the previous Scotia post a few threads down and I do not feel comfortable with signing a contact to blend and extend only to break it two weeks later.


I have a goal of paying off my mortgage as soon as possible. I like ING because of the 25% prepayment option. Are there any other banks offering this option? I have only seen 15% on the other banks websites. Should I bother with a broker? I have already sent in an application to ING and it will likely get approved. I have very good credit. Does ING have a history of offering a lower rate than the "best" rate posted on their website. What are the chances that I can get ING to pay part of my IRD? 


Any general advice for a first time renewer would be welcome as well.

Thanks.


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## HaroldCrump (Jun 10, 2009)

I suggest shop through a broker.
ING option is open to you, so see if the broker can beat it.
Other than the interest rate, look for features such as double payments every year, at least 20% pre-payment every year, etc.
I have 20% pre-payment option, ironically with Scotiabank that you dislike so much 
You are right that quality of service varies hugely with branches and location.


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## LondonHomes (Dec 29, 2010)

Pre-payment options, double payments and increasing your loan payment seem to be standard options at most banks, they have been offered in every mortgage I've had. It seems ING maybe doing a better effort of marketing these terms but I doubt they are unique.

If you currently have a mortgage and want to pay it off quickly. I doubt you want another 25 year amortization. You should amortize it over the period left on the orginal mortgage.

If you are going to be changing banks, your new bank will require a housing appraisal which they should be willing to pay for. However, you will also need to hire and pay for your own lawyer similiar to when you purchased the home.

As well you should know that every time you fill out a credit application it reduces your credit rating so becareful with how many you submit.

Finally it seems to me that you should just consider switching the Scotiabank branch that holds the mortgage on your house.


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## I'm Howard (Oct 13, 2010)

Mortgage Brokers don't charge you for their service and they will get you the best deal, all you have to do is sign.

President's choice have 2.3% Variable.


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## GeniusBoy27 (Jun 11, 2010)

Everything is negotiable ... so if you see something you like, take it to your bank of preference and ask them to match it.

Most banks do. (at least, mine does.)


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## Sampson (Apr 3, 2009)

I too would suggest going through a broker.

Also, if a 25% prepayment option is important, why bother with the 25 yr amortization? Sounds like you are capable of paying off your balance in under 5 years.

It also sounds like you are planning to break your existing mortgage, and not actually renewing. Have you run the numbers and determined whether you are better off breaking? If you have the capital, as your post suggests, why not just max your prepayment options with Scotia and ride out the term (maybe 1-2 years left?).

I doubt that over the course of 1-2 years and a lower variable rate that you would make up for the lost $4600.


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## Dana (Nov 17, 2009)

Sampson said:


> I too would suggest going through a broker.


+1

Give a couple of different brokers a call and get their opinions.


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## Plugging Along (Jan 3, 2011)

I agree with the others to use a broker. There's no cost, can't really hurt. 

Have you looked into an open variable mortage? It's good if you want the flexibility to make large payments at any time. Also, if you're planning on paying it off faster, the rates are currently great


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## Berubeland (Sep 6, 2009)

I too have been a victim of a terrible branch in my case BMO. 

Probably the worst thing they did was reset my business account to default new account status when they changed my bank card. 

At that time, because of their terrible hours...10am to 3 pm they had allowed me after much lobbying to deposit checks directly into the bank machine without any holds. 

After a very long job I got my large pay and put it in the bank to pay bills, having changed my status, they then held my check for 7 business days and I happily went about and paid all my outstanding bills by check. All the checks bounced about 10 of them. Previous to this I had never had a bounced check in my account. 

I went to my branch to clear it up, they then told me what a horrible person I was and that I should have known, finally after screaming at them for a while they agreed to issue letters of apologies to all the people I had bounced checks to. They would not restore the original settings on my bank card...they told me "only big companies like Bell Canada get to deposit checks directly now". They also did not change my account history to reflect that I was not a serial check bouncer, every time I went to another branch to deposit money, the manager would be called. Finally it was one of them who asked why I bounced so many checks. 

My BMO branch was what is known as a training branch so every time I went there, we had new tellers and new managers. All in all it was so unpleasant to deal with them that the level of stress I would experience when dealing with them was unbelievable. 

Conversely with TD Canada Trust, I have had nothing but good experiences they have good hours of business, pleasant customer service and the tellers now know me most of them have been there for years. The business teller has seen my son since he was a baby and I had business and would bring him. Every time I go she asks me how he's doing. 

If BMO gave me $1000 bucks I wouldn't even open an account there. If your bank sucks they can do so much damage to your reputation and cause you stress. Today I would not tolerate the treatment I got, I would move my business elsewhere before they do something more incompetent and horrible to you.


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## marina628 (Dec 14, 2010)

I worked at BMO many years ago and when 5 checks bounce your acct gets permanently coded as ',9' nothing a branch cans do to remove it. I have been very happy with TD Bank over the years.Our mobile Mortgage Specialist is why we moved everything from BMO to TD in 2008.


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## Cal (Jun 17, 2009)

I like to check with ratesupermarket.ca and monstermortgage.ca at renewal time just to compare. (GTA)


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