Slash Your Credit Card Rates To 5.65% Today!

Choosing Your Credit Card

As you probably already know, there are many credit cards out there. The one you choose however should reflect your lifestyle and your ideal spending amounts. If you are looking for the best possible deal and the best company for your credit card, you’ll obviously need to look around at what you have to choose from and what works best for you.

The first thing you’ll need to decide when choosing your credit card is why you need one in the first place. Some people choose to get a credit card for cash flow purposes. With a credit card, you can make purchases and buy things, leaving your paycheck or other source of income in your bank account to draw interest. This way, your money will continue to grow while you continue to buy the things you need. Then at the end of the month, simply pay your bill.

Others will choose to get a credit card and use it for instant cash purposes. This way, they can use their credit card at an ATM and get instant cash, which is great for travel or going on a long and extended vacation. If this is why you want a credit card, you should look for one that has the lowest rate possible for instant cash transactions.

With a credit card, you’ll also need to think about the payments. You’ll need to decide if you want to pay the balance in full each month, or only the required amount. When you select your credit card, you should look at the introductory rates, balance transfer rates, and other offers that may apply to new credit cards and new holders. Some will offer you truly amazing deals, especially if you have good credit.

Another important area to look at when choosing your credit card is the incentives. There are several cards out there that will give you incentives, such as reward points and even cash back with purchases that you can use towards paying back what you owe. There are several incentives out there with credit cards, all you have to do is look around and compare.

The key area you’ll need to look at and compare is the APR (Annual Percentage Rate). The APR is what you will pay on what you purchase when the incentive period runs out. APR rates will vary among credit cards, so it is always in your best interest to compare and shop around. The lower APR rate you get, the better off you’ll be.

Another concern with choosing your credit card is the minimum payment amount. Most minimum payment balances will start around 3%, although some can be lower while others tend to be quite a bit higher. The interest free period is a concern as well, as you will obviously want to choose the longest period that you can keep the payments down.

When you make that final decision and choose your credit card, you should always make sure that you know exactly what you are getting. Credit cards are great to have, although they can lead to a downfall if you don’t choose them carefully. If you put some time and research into choosing your credit card, you’ll find the best one for you. As long as you take care of your credit card and pay the bill on time, you’ll help raise your credit and eventually be able to purchase even bigger things - such as a car or even a house.

You can find the best choice of credit cards and at www.joemalek.com/credit-cards.html

Slash your credit card rates to Prime+0.90% (currently 5.65%) and transfer your balances (up to $50,000) today.

Click here to get started!

Joe Malek, AMP
Accredited Mortgage Professional

Secured Credit Cards Can Lower Your Mortgage Interest Rates & Fees!

Here is one of the dozens of questions I receive daily:

Question: My wife and I wish to purchase a house in Canada. We are experiencing a problem getting a mortgage; I am a citizen and she is a permanent resident, we have an eleven year old daughter.

We have been in Canada for 3 months and I have been working for 3 weeks, as I have been resident overseas for 20 years I have no credit history here. I am a full time permanent, hourly paid employee at $11.00 per hour. My wife works voluntarily and is not paid.

The housing market in Yorkton is out of control due to the boom in Saskatchewan and we wish to get our own house as our apartment rental is now $550.00 per month. We have no debts bar utilities, our car is paid for and I can afford a down payment of $15,000.

I have my overseas credit report but my rating is low, probably because we worked on cash and had no credit cards, our house was also paid for.

We do not have a credit card except for a "prepaid " MasterCard.

Today we looked at a house at $59,900 which though small would suit us.

What I need to know is there any point in submitting an offer?

Cornerstone Credit Union says I have to work for six months, Western Canadian says I have to work for one year, I have applied with TMG on May 17th, 2008 who want bank references from overseas.

I tried applying online with Scotia bank on Sunday June 15th but they have not acknowledged my application as of today. Your help would be valued.

Answer: Most lenders require 1 year on the job as you've already found out and this includes BNS.

Only private lenders who deal with "sub prime" clients may be able to help you BUT I recommend you wait until you are at least 1 year on the job to save on interest rate, fees and house price.

Housing market is slowing down. Supply of good homes will flood the market and prices across Canada will decline.

Purchase your new home in 2009 and 2010 but make sure you re-establish your credit first with secured credit cards.

You’ll be glad you did!

Joe Malek, AMP

Get Deep Discount Rate

Fixed-rate mortgages at the big banks soared late last week by as much as 0.85 of a percentage point but I am pleased to inform you that I still offer my customers some of the most competitive rates in the market today!

Loan amount = 5 Year Fixed Rate

$1 million plus = 4.99%
$500K - $999K = 5.09%
$250K - $499K = 5.29%
$100K - $249K = 5.39%

Why pay 5.60% or higher when you can switch to our VERICO Mortgage and pay less!

Visit my site www.joemalek.com to apply online for this quick close special.

Thank you

Joe Malek, AMP

Mortgage Rates Changed Direction

Mortgage rates are going up instead of going down, a trend that's likely to continue as the Bank of Canada shifts its focus from stimulating the economy to taming inflation.

A five-year fixed mortgage now cost half a percentage point more than it did on Wednesday.

This means the average bank customer will pay a discounted rate of about 6.09 per cent for a five-year fixed term, compared with Wednesday's 5.59 per cent.

The move came sooner than some industry watchers had expected, and was driven largely by a spike in five-year bond yields caused by concerns about the rising cost of living.

Bond yields, on which fixed mortgage rates are based, rose sharply after the Bank of Canada surprised the markets with the announcement that it would freeze, rather than cut, its key lending rate.

The increase in mortgage rates comes at the same time the housing market is softening, with sales dropping and a glut of listings flooding the market in a number of cities.

A Statistics Canada study showed Canadians are finding themselves with two mortgages and deeper in debt than at any time in their lives. They are increasingly house poor, and with housing values sliding, they often owe more on their properties than they're worth.

About 17 per cent of all Canadian households have at least one mortgage, the highest percentage since 1981. The number of Canadians aged 60 and over with mortgages has been increasing since 2001.

And with the Bank of Canada poised for perhaps only one more interest rate cut before they start increasing rates in late fall to combat inflation, Canadians facing rising variable mortgage rates or fixed rates that will be reset at higher levels could find it tough to keep their homes.

If you are considering a home purchase or refinancing then go to my website www.joemalek.com to lock in your rate up to 120 days to protect yourself from further rate increases.

Thank you

Joe Malek, AMP
Accredited Mortgage Professional

Important News About Mortgage Life Insurance

I'm sure you're aware of the importance of insuring your mortgage to minimize the impact of an untimely death or disability. These events can have a serious impact on your ability to continue your mortgage commitments.

Currently, some banks offer mortgage insurance to the clients with a short questionnaire.

This doesn't mean they are insured, and in fact, sometimes the claim is denied as reported in a CBC Marketplace television special (http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/in_denial/).

This can be devastating to you if you are denied your claim that you were confident you had.

This is yet another reason why you should always use a broker and say no to banks!

Thank you

Joe Malek, AMP
Accredited Mortgage Professional

Where The Insurrers Consistently Decline Applications

Through my regular review of incoming deals and the insurer's decisions on these deals, I have found some situations where the insurers consistently decline applications.

I would like to share with you some of my findings with the hopes that you will gain a better understanding of what insurrers cannot consider;

-The insurers consider refinance applications with trades that are currently or recently delinquent or have balances that are at or over their limit to be considered default management.

-Minor derogatory trades (R2s) can be considered after a bankruptcy on a case by case basis however, more serious derogatory items after discharge are not considered.

-Applicants who have been twice bankrupt or have any combination of bankruptcy, consumer proposal or credit counselling.

-Trades that are maintained through a bankruptcy are not considered to be re-established credit. The insurers are looking for new credit after the bankruptcy.

-Credit that is not appearing on the credit bureau will not be taken into consideration in determining credit worthiness.

Finally, I have found that the insurers look at all aspects of the deal tend to look unfavourably at deals that have multiple risk factors. A previous bankrupt with short job tenure, maxed out ratios and gifted downpayment would be more likely to be turned down than the client that had saved downpayment, low ratios and long term job tenure.

As always, if you have any questions, do not hesitate to give me a call at 1-888-292-2156.

Thank you

Joe Malek, AMP