Friday night was an amazing time at my Birthday Extravaganza!  Thank you so much to everyone who came out to support our cause and to those who generously donated to the raffle.  We managed to raise over $1300 for Leukemia and Lymphoma and Robyn is working hard to prepare for her half marathon with Team in Training on May 1^st.  For those of you who were not able to attend but who would still like to contribute, Robyn's donation link is http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?registrationID=1043727&langPref=en-CA

The fixed interest rates have started to head up and lenders are taking a bigger piece of the pie.  We still have a few lenders hovering at the bottom and variable rates remain deeply discounted.  Despite the very poor weather, Spring is just around the corner meaning that the real estate market is heating up.  If you are considering a move in the next 4 - 6 months, please give us a call. We can run some numbers to help you discover your purchasing power and hold interest rates for you.

All the best!

OTTAWA - First-time homebuyers looking to avoid higher interest rates down the road are helping drive up the real-estate market in a number of Canadian regions, says a report issued Tuesday.

Real-estate services firm Re/Max said the prospect of higher mortgage rates has prompted many of those determined to get into the market to act in the early part of this year.

It also noted the federal government's newly implemented conditions for mortgages that reduced the maximum amortization period for government-insured mortgages to 30 from 35 years, and limited the amount people can borrow when refinancing their mortgages to 85 from 90 per cent of the value of their homes.

Rather than diminishing overall demand, Re/Max said the new rules are prompting many to compromise on their expectations.

"Many purchasers intent on realizing home ownership are scaling back on expectations or are willing to sacrifice location, quality and/or size to make their dream a reality, not unlike generations before them," said Michael Polzler, Re/Max's executive vice-president for Ontario and Atlantic Canada.

Led by the Bank of Canada's relatively low benchmark rate of one per cent, homebuyers continue to enjoy mortgage rates that are low by historical standards. However, it's not expected to last.

Just this week, most of Canada's major banks hiked their mortgage rates, with standard five-year, fixed rates moving up 35 basis points to 5.69 per cent a year.

Re/Max said that, so far this year, home sales are up from where they were at the same time in 2010 in about 30 per cent of Canada's main markets, with prices rising in 70 per cent of markets.

The Vancouver region is particularly strong, with sales up about 12 per cent and prices rising 20 per cent.

Some of biggest sales gains are in the West, Re/Max said, including Saskatoon's 15 per cent gain and Winnipeg's growth of 11 per cent.

Some of the other areas where price growth is strong include Hamilton (eight per cent), Quebec City (seven per cent), Winnipeg (seven per cent), Toronto (five per cent) and Montreal (five per cent).

As a mortgage broker with Meridian West Coast Mortgages, I aim to have referrals as our main source of my business.  This is why I wholeheartedly appreciate those who place their trust and loyalty in me by referring friends, family, colleagues and acquaintances. I want to reward your gesture!

This is my Referral Rewards Program which has 5 tiers to show you my gratitude for your referrals.  Whenever you refer a new client to me which results in a closed mortgage, I would like to offer you a gift. Here's an example.

1st Referral:  $50 Visa gift card

  2^nd Referral:  $100 Visa gift card

 3^rd Referral:  $150 Visa gift card

4^th Referral:  $200 Visa gift card

5^th Referral:  $250 Visa gift card

As a mortgage broker, I am able to help to arrange mortgage financing for residential property purchases, present options when a mortgage is up for renewal, and assist in refinancing current mortgages for a better rate or to access equity for my clients.  I appreciate you introducing me to those you know.

When you refer someone to me, I thank you.  It's that simple.