Your Rights and Responsibilities with Mortgages
One of the best ways to avoid mortgage fraud (or any type of fraud), is to ensure you do your due diligence when applying for a mortgage. Being smart about mortgage shopping is as simple as reading through your mortgage documents carefully before you sign them, and being cognisant of what information should be provided to you (as per the law).
The following information must be provided to you in your mortgage agreement:
- The principal amount (amount you are borrowing)
- The annual interest rate
- The annual percentage rate (APR)
- The mortgage term (period of your mortgage)
- The date of advance (date which you’ll start being charged interest)
- Amount of your payments, and when they are due
- The amortization period (time it will take to pay your mortgage in full)
- The amount you can pay in a year, in addition to regular payments, without being charged penalty (also known as prepayment privilege)
- Prepayment charges
- The cost of default insurance
- Any other fees that may apply, such as discharge or default fee, as well as insufficient funds fee
Want to know more about what should be included in your mortgage agreement? Visit the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada’s website, or you can always contact me as well via this website, or find me on Twitter any time.
