MORTGAGEBROKERNEWS.CA ISSUE 13.05 | $12.95
BEST IN THE BUSINESS A behind-the-scenes look at all the victors from this year's Canadian Mortgage Awards
KEEPING WATCH OVER THE WATCHDOG Is FSCO doing all it can to keep dishonest brokers out of the industry?
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WHY YOU SHOULD SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF Lenders reveal how you can get the details right on every file you submit
NETWORKING THE RIGHT WAY The four types of people you need to build a successful network
17/05/2018 7:32:44 AM
WHAT’S THE REAL VALUE OF A 3-BEDROOM HOME IN KITCHENER?
A
IC-designated appraisers are Canada’s real estate valuation experts. We apply proven, professional standards to keep the value of real estate grounded in reality. Mortgage professionals rely on us for unbiased and independent opinions of value to secure mortgage financing. If it involves real estate, involve an AIC-designated appraiser. Find an AIC-designated appraiser by visiting us online.
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ISSUE 13.05
CONTENTS
BEST IN THE BUSINESS
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SPECIAL REPORT
CMP reveals the brokers, brokerages, networks and service providers who won big at the 12th annual Canadian Mortgage Awards
UNLOCKING VALUE OFTEN REQUIRES SPECIAL KEYS. Romspen Investment Corporation is a non-bank mortgage lender specializing in commercial real estate across Canada and the United States. With over $2.2 billion under administration, we offer customized mortgage solutions for term, bridge and construction financing from $5M to $100M. Blake Cassidy or Pierre Leonard | 800 494 0389 | www.romspen.com
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ISSUE 13.05
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CONTENTS
twitter.com/CMPmagazine plus.google.com/+MortgagebrokernewsCa facebook.com/MortgageProfessionalCA
UPFRONT 04 Editorial
Celebrating the industry’s best
06 Statistics
FEATURES
44 54
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THE FIVE Cs OF CREDIT IN ACTION What exactly does an alternative lender look at when assessing a borrower’s credit?
As with residential lending, documentation is a makeor-break element of a commercial file – and these two documents are ones you can’t afford to leave out PEOPLE
INDUSTRY ICON
Paradigm Quest’s Kathy Gregory reveals how she blazed a trail as a woman and an entrepreneur in the mortgage industry
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08 Head to head
Is more regulation needed for mobile mortgage specialists?
10 News analysis
As the Fortress Real Development syndicated mortgage saga rages on, brokers call for FSCO to take a stronger stand against fraudsters
12 Commercial update
The cannabis industry is firing up the commercial market
14 Alternative lending update
FEATURES
MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR DOCUMENTATION
What’s behind an increase in confidence among prospective homebuyers?
The majority of Canadians say they support tighter lending rules
52 PEOPLE
BROKER INSIGHT Industry veteran Enza Venuto shares her tips for weathering a tough market
16 Opinion
The government needs to exercise caution before making any further tweaks to the mortgage market
FEATURES 60 Command and control
Take control of your business with this easy-to-implement reporting strategy
PEOPLE 62 Career path
58
From living through the Gulf War to running her own brokerage, there’s no challenge Dalia Barsoum can’t conquer
64 Other life
In the saddle with equestrian Deborah Dickson
FEATURES
NETWORKING FOR SUCCESS
It’s all about who you know – but some types of professional contacts are more valuable than others
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UPFRONT
EDITORIAL
Behind the scenes at the CMAs
T
his year’s Canadian Mortgage Awards drew the largest crowd since the event’s inception 12 years ago. On a warm, sunny Friday evening, attendees began turning up in elegant gowns and dashing suits for the gala, which has now cemented its status as the Oscars of the mortgage industry. The night got off to a ceremonious start as Collin Bruce accepted the award for Best Use of Mobile Technology from Canadian Mortgage App creator Ben Salami, who effusively praised the Bruce team’s commitment to innovation. Another of the night’s highlights was first-year mortgage broker Akash Sharma winning the award for Alternative Broker Specialist of the Year (Business for Self ). After spending years at TD Bank, Sharma plunged into the brokering world, and his victory leaves little doubt that he made the right decision. Halifax-based broker Clinton Wilkins walked away with Mortgage Broker of the Year (Fewer than 25 Employees), telling CMP that he’s pleased to put Atlantic Canada on the radar in an industry that’s largely concentrated in Ontario and British Columbia. The night’s other major individual accolade –
Being recognized by an independent panel of judges lends winners credence in the eyes of their peers – and, more importantly, their clients Mortgage Broker of the Year (25 Employees or More) – went to Anne Brill of Centum Metrocapp Wealth Solutions. Despite being a frequent nominee, Brill was nonetheless surprised by her win, saying, “When they called my name, I stepped out of my body.” On the company side, CanWise Financial racked up an impressive four nominations and took home hardware for Mortgage Brokerage of the Year (25 Employees or More). The final award of the night, National Broker Network of the Year, went to Dominion Lending Centres – and given the year the network had in 2017, nobody seemed the least bit surprised. As past and present winners told CMP, these trophies are more than mere decoration for their mantels. Being recognized by an independent panel of judges lends winners credence in the eyes of their peers – and, more importantly, their clients.
www.mortgagebrokernews.ca ISSUE 13.05 EDITORIAL Writers Neil Sharma Joe Rosengarten Libby Macdonald Ephraim Vecina Heather Turner Hannah Go Copy Editor Clare Alexander
CONTRIBUTORS Graeme Moss Paul McGill Janine Garner Matt Malouf
ART & PRODUCTION Designers Loiza Caguiat Marla Morelos Aira Olgado Production Manager Alicia Chin Advertising Coordinator Ella Dayandante
SALES & MARKETING Associate Publisher Trevor Biggs Vice President, Sales John Mackenzie National Account Manager Trevor Lambert Marketing and Communications Melissa Christopoulos Project Coordinator Jessica Duce
CORPORATE President & CEO Tim Duce Office/Traffic Manager Marni Parker Events and Conference Manager Chris Davis Chief Information Officer Colin Chan Human Resources Manager Julia Bookallil Global CEO Mike Shipley Global COO George Walmsley
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Copyright is reserved throughout. No part of this publication can be reproduced in whole or part without the express permission of the editor. Contributions are invited, but copies of work should be kept, as the magazine can accept no responsibility for loss
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CONGRATULATIONS! Anne Brill for winning Mortgage Broker of the Year More than 25 Employees and Clinton Wilkins for winning Mortgage Broker of the Year Less than 25 Employees.
Both are part of the CENTUM family! Coincidence? I think not! A hard working brand, for hard working brokers! Let’s Chat! Opportunity@centum.ca | centumcanada.ca/franchises ®/™ Trademarks owned by Centum Financial Group Inc. © 2018 Centum Financial Group Inc. The intent of this communication is for informational purposes only, and is not intended to be a solicitation to anyone under contract with another mortgage brokerage operation.
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UPFRONT
STATISTICS
Confidence rising The number of Canadians ready to purchase a home has soared – but what’s fuelling this newfound confidence? NEARLY A third of Canadians say they’re likely to purchase real estate in the next two years, a 7% increase compared to the year before. According to RBC’s latest Home Ownership Poll, this trend stretches across the nation, with the exception of the Atlantic provinces (the only geographical region to report a drop in prospective homebuyers). The recent upward trajectory of interest
rates has perhaps counterintuitively lit a fire under would-be homeowners, who appear to be driven by the desire to buy in what is still a relatively low-rate environment. To some extent, this uptick is also a result of a surge in confidence on the part of millennials, who are increasingly keen to become property owners as their confidence in Canada’s economic future rises.
BRITISH COLUMBIA
36% % CHANGE FROM 2017
11%
ONE IN THREE A POTENTIAL BUYER Despite further tightening of lending rules at the beginning of the year, 32% of consumers Canada-wide told RBC they are either very or somewhat likely to buy a home in the next two years. Those in BC and Alberta were most likely to make a purchase, while Atlantic Canadians were the least confident about their ability to buy a home. KEY
32%
of Canadians said finding the right property is their top home-buying challenge
21%
said deciding how much they can afford is their biggest challenge
36%
used online calculators to help determine costs and affordability
5 weeks
was the average amount of time people spent searching online for their current home
Percentage of consumers likely to buy a home in the next two years
Source: Annual RBC Home Ownership Poll, April 2018
DRIVEN BY RATES
MAKING COMPROMISES
Interest-rate anxiety seems to be spurring purchasing decisions; the proportion of Canadians who described themselves as concerned about rate increases was up almost 10% from the year before.
Although most Canadians (61%) remain unaware of the new stress-test rules, those who are informed about the updated guidelines say they’re having an impact on their decision-making, whether by forcing them to accumulate a larger down payment, delay their purchase or compromise on their ideal home.
61% 35% 32%
Prospective homebuyers concerned about interest rate increases Contemplating purchasing sooner because of current low interest rates Thinking of doing so because of a potential increase in interest rates Source: Annual RBC Home Ownership Poll, April 2018
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Prospective homebuyers who say the new stress test is impacting their purchase decisions 55% Plan to make higher down payments 25% Will delay their purchase 19% Will compromise on price, size or location 18% Source: Annual RBC Home Ownership Poll, April 2018
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ALBERTA
ATLANTIC PROVINCES
37%
23%
% CHANGE FROM 2017
11%
% CHANGE FROM 2017
3%
ONTARIO
33% % CHANGE FROM 2017
7%
SASKATCHEWAN/ MANITOBA
QUEBEC
29% % CHANGE FROM 2017
29%
14%
14%
% CHANGE FROM 2017
Source: Annual RBC Home Ownership Poll, April 2018
THE YOUNG AND THE CONFIDENT
FINDING THE MONEY
Despite the increasingly high barriers for first-time buyers to enter the housing market, millennials are more optimistic about the economy, their employment and their home-buying prospects than they were last year. Fifty per cent of millennials told RBC they plan to buy a home in the next two years, an 11% increase from 2017.
As new lending rules increasingly force buyers to save larger down payments, more than a third said they plan to turn to their families for assistance.
79%
Millennials who think buying a home is “a good investment”
36%
35%
84% 47%
Millennials who are anxious about employment
36%
2017 2018
28%
Millennials who feel uncertain about the economy
19% 0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Source: Annual RBC Home Ownership Poll, April 2018
Plan on financial assistance from family for down payment
Plan to save their down payment on their own Source: Annual RBC Home Ownership Poll, April 2018
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UPFRONT
HEAD TO HEAD
Should mobile mortgage specialists be regulated?
Subjecting banks’ road reps to the same requirements as mortgage brokers would only improve the industry, brokers argue
Elvis Hui
President, residential/commercial mortgages DLC Guaranti Mortgages “They should be regulated. The nature of the job is very similar to other brokers, but they have the advantage of being backed by a bank brand. With that brand behind them, it is easier for them to win the client’s trust; sometimes they don’t even meet the client face-to-face because the brand confers trust. The recent incidents at CIBC and BNS, in which top producers were fired, make it more clear than ever that regulation is needed. As it is, they have no legal responsibility if they are found to be defrauding customers. They should be under the purview of FSCO.”
Mitch Parker
Kevin Liddiard
Founder North72 Real Capital
Mortgage agent DLC Easy Street Mortgages
“In short, yes they should. Having both mortgage brokers and mortgage specialists regulated by the same governing body would create muchneeded consistency across the industry. At the end of the day, a mortgage is a huge decision for the consumer, and they deserve to be confident they are truly getting the best product for their specific situation. It also may help detect any fraudulent activity earlier than if just left up to the banks to monitor. Holding everyone to the same set of ethics and standards can only mean better days ahead for all parties.”
“Mobile specialists can only offer products within the parameters of the institution for which they work, and the client may not be getting the most appropriate product for their needs. Also, mobile specialists often expose their clients to high-pressure sales tactics and cross-selling. Holding mobile specialists to the same standards as brokers will protect the client and also increase accountability and transparency while providing a level playing field. Compelling other mortgage professionals to abide by the motto ‘put the client first’ will increase public confidence in the industry as a whole.”
WRANGLING ROAD REPS Mobile mortgage specialists, typically backed by a bank and thus restricted to that instutution’s suite of products, are usually compensated via a commission-only model, a combination of circumstances that puts them under additional pressure to close deals, potentially to the detriment of the client. Unlike brokers, mobile mortgage specialists aren’t required to have a mortgage agent’s licence or subject to oversight by regulatory bodies such as FSCO, which many in the industry feel creates an uneven playing field.
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UPFRONT
NEWS ANALYSIS
A nominal watchdog? Brokers allege that the Financial Services Commission of Ontario has demonstrated time and again that it is either unwilling or unable to execute its mandate
ACCORDING TO brokers, the Financial Services Commission of Ontario has proven itself an impotent entity incapable of forcefully punishing reprobates. The almost four-yearlong saga involving Fortress Real Development’s alleged syndicated mortgage fraud has brought to the fore FSCO’s unavailing nature. A slew of mortgage brokers CMP spoke to, both on and off the record, expressed incredulity at FSCO’s handling of the matter. Ron Butler of Butler Mortgage says various industry players had entreated FSCO to investigate the company’s practices, but the watchdog remained complacent until Reuters published a damning report. The news outlet revealed FSCO was in possession of enough evidence to discipline Fortressaffiliated brokers, but that its executive director for licensing and market conduct,
about the insane amount of commission being paid – in our business, it typically ranges from … half a percent to 1%; these guys were being paid 8%, being spread out between mortgage brokers and brokerages. “FSCO took no definitive action until the Reuters report hit,” Butler adds, “and at that point the finance minister instructed FSCO to do something about it.” Then there’s the matter of disgraced mortgage agent Dominic Ha, who solicited around $9 million from unsophisticated investors for syndicated mortgages in conjunction with convicted fraudster Gary Fraser and his Black Bear Homes development. Under Section 49 of the Mortgage Brokerages, Lenders and Administrators Act, Ha could have faced a fine of up to $100,000, as well as up to a year in prison. Section 50 stipulates that the
“Various parties in our industry have been talking to FSCO about what’s wrong with Fortress for seven years” Ron Butler, Butler Mortgage Anatol Monid, had deemed it insufficient. “Various parties in our industry have been talking about what’s wrong with Fortress to FSCO for seven years,” Butler says. “We were on a conference call with various FSCO people, and we talked about all the red flags. We talked
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courts can order convicted parties to pay compensation or make restitution. FSCO suspended Ha’s mortgage license, which he appealed, and when he subsequently chose not to renew his license, FSCO dropped the matter altogether. According to
a lawyer representing one of Ha’s victims, pursuing Ha would have opened up a can of worms for the regulator. “A jail sentence would have gotten the message across that FSCO will take action so that the public is protected,” says Torontobased real estate lawyer David Franklin. “They could have a judge order repayment, but FSCO could care less. The problem is they’re very embarrassed about what’s happened in this whole area. If they went after him for this, they’d have to go after Tier 1 that way, Fortress that way, all the rest, and that becomes very embarrassing for them.” Additionally, FSCO could have charged Ha under the Provincial Offences Act, but again chose to withhold charges. “They knew at the time, especially because of all the arti-
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THE FORTRESS REAL DEVELOPMENTS CASE: A CLOSER LOOK JUNE 2014 FSCO opens an investigation into syndicated mortgages linked to Fortress Real Developments MAY 2015 FSCO executive director Anatol Monid deems the evidence against Fortress Real Developments to be insufficient NOVEMBER 2017 A Reuters news report reveals FSCO had substantial evidence of fraud in the Fortress Real Developments case but did nothing FEBRUARY 2018 FSCO sanctions four brokers and four brokerages connected to Fortress Real Developments in a $1.1 million settlement APRIL 2018 RCMP executes six search warrants, including of Fortress Real Developments’ head office in Richmond Hill, Ontario
cles on Dominic Ha and Black Bear, they had all the information,” Franklin says. “They already knew of Gary Fraser, who they knew
conducted a search of the embattled company’s office in mid-April – is telling of the degree to which FSCO dodged its responsibilities. That
“Nobody feels FSCO has any clout at all, and when you do find people doing inappropriate things, very little happens” Corinna Smith-Gatcke, Verico The Mortgage Advisors was convicted of fraud. Why didn’t they have the matter referred to under the Provincial Services Act? It’s all public record.” The fact that Fortress Real Developments is now the subject of an RCMP investigation – the police force’s white-collar crime team
doesn’t surprise mortgage broker Corinna Smith-Gatcke, who was once involved in a transaction in which a borrower could have fallen prey to a predatory lender because of deceitful brokers. “None of the brokers who touched the file
ever worked on behalf of the client, and I contacted all brokers of record,” SmithGatcke says. “What I do know is if you poke the bear and lodge a complaint with FSCO, you open Pandora’s box. They’ll come after you as much as the person you’re lodging the complaint against.” Dissuaded by fellow brokers, she dropped the matter. “Nobody feels FSCO has any clout at all, and when you do find people doing inappropriate things, very little happens,” she says. There’s nothing in our industry to protect you as a broker or an agent. There’s no incentive for a broker or agent to willingly declare that they have seen something fraudulent. Most brokerages make those claims regardless, and those are the brokerages you want to be aligned with.”
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UPFRONT
COMMERCIAL UPDATE NEWS BRIEFS Commercial activity continues to ramp up in Toronto
The total amount of commercial space leased in Toronto shot up by 13.5% year-over-year during the first quarter of 2018, according to the Toronto Real Estate Board. TREB’s commercial arm reported that nearly 6.3 million square feet of combined commercial, industrial, retail and office space was leased during the period. “The current economic climate for the GTA is one filled with robust employment opportunities, which foster immigration-based population growth,” said TREB president Tim Syrianos. “Companies continue to seek out talented professionals across a number of different sectors, and this is reflected in the leasing activity.”
Canada’s hotel market exhibiting sustained strength
A recent CBRE report noted that Canada’s hotel segment is an excellent investment right now. The sector exhibited remarkable investment and operations strength last year, which is expected to continue well into 2018. According to CBRE’s 2018 Canadian Hotels Outlook, last year’s hotel investment volume reached $3.4 billion, including mergers and acquisitions, while investment in 2016 was $4.1 billion. Over the past two years, the segment has been characterized by strong merger and acquisition activity and healthy tourism numbers, especially in the country’s three largest cities.
Non-residential construction on an upward trend this year
In early April, The Conference Board of Canada predicted that nonresidential construction will experience a turnaround in 2018 after two years of declines. Growth in this segment is
projected to hit 1.9% this year, amid a 15% increase in the value of new commercial, industrial and institutional building permits in 2017. “Growth in e-commerce continues to drive demand for more warehouse space,” the report said. “In combination with several new mining projects and planned plant expansions, this will support growth in the industrial segment.”
Amazon could give Vancouver market another boost
Amazon could soon give Canada’s costliest market yet another push in the direction of unaffordable house prices and microscopic office vacancy rates. The Seattle-based company is planning to increase its Vancouver workforce fivefold to 5,000 by 2022, mostly in high-tech positions. Amazon now occupies more office space in Seattle than the next 40 largest employers in the city combined. “It’s no joke for any metro when Amazon comes in,” Zillow Group senior economist Aaron Terrazas told Bloomberg. “Amazon attracts other companies that also want that talent, so they build, have offices next door or adjacent to it – supply becomes a challenge.”
Montreal’s commercial market still chugging along
Montreal’s commercial real estate market is set to remain strong on the heels of a record-breaking 2017, according to market observers at the recent Montreal Real Estate Forum. According to Lloyd Cooper of Cushman & Wakefield, last year proved to be an “off the charts” year for the city – 1.5 million square feet of office space was absorbed, including 680,000 square feet downtown. Cooper added that Montreal remains very much a tenant’s market, with “outward pressure from the suburbs and growing live/work/play areas such as Mile Ex keeping rents down.”
Cannabis heats up the market As legalization looms, cannabis could turn Canada’s commercial real estate sector into an economic powerhouse A few months out from the federal legalization of recreational marijuana, British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley is playing host to several current and proposed cannabis production facilities – and the region’s commercial and industrial segments are heating up as a result. “The Okanagan has always been an incredible centre for agriculture, and we have the unique opportunity here of taking advantage of the long days, the bright sun and an incredible job pool in the agricultural community to draw from,” Dominic Unsworth, head facilities designer with Green Mountain Health Alliance, told Global News. The wholesale cannabis company recently purchased a 16-acre private property off Highway 3A in Kaleden. The parcel could soon house a 200,000-square-foot production facility that will support the company’s goal to become a licensed producer growing 10,000kg of marijuana every year. “We will be distributing across Canada and globally to the medical market,” Unsworth says. Unsworth, who was previously involved in the wine industry, notes that he’s witnessed similar shifts among vintners across the Okanagan Valley. “It’s a logical transition for people who are used to growing high-quality fruit,” he says. “We’re growing high-quality flower. There is very little difference.” In a recent analysis, Colliers International said predicted the cannabis-driven appetite for industrial and agricultural land will only increase as time goes on. “The closer we get to
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the legalization, there is so much more activity, but interestingly, there is a lot of money behind all of this,” said managing broker Murray Wills. Meanwhile, Edmonton is also bracing for a cannabis-related commercial real estate boom – according to city official Brad White, Edmonton’s transportation links, conducive regulatory regime, and abundant sunshine and water will
The closer we get to legalization, there is so much more activity, but interestingly, there is a lot of money behind all of this” make it a major cannabis hub worth upwards of $100 million annually. White predicts that a mature Edmonton marijuana market could open new jobs for as many as 2,000 people in a just a few years, paving the way for the diversification of the local economy. Edmonton’s city council will be conducting public hearings to discuss proposed zoning changes that would take into account facilities like cannabis stores, which will be owned by private companies in Alberta. “I do think the industry and its sectors will gravitate here because of the [provincial] privatization model and because the city is welcoming to all legal sectors,” White told Postmedia. “Industry is in our DNA, and agriculture is in our blood. I think we will be in a really good spot.”
Q&A
John Good Owner/director CITIFUND CAPITAL CORPORATION
Years in the industry 26 Fast fact A commercial broker since 1992, Good primarily focuses on retail, industrial, multiunit residential and condo properties
Supply is key in BC What’s the current situation in BC’s commercial market? That’s a complicated question, not least because there are so many sectors that come into play in this market – everything from land to industrial/condo construction. The geography varies quite greatly, as do product types. In general, I’d say that the availability of financing for the BC commercial segment is getting more limited.
What do you attribute this development to? A lot of it is, I think, caused by repeated government intervention like the empty-homes tax, which has caused quite a bit of concern among consumers and industry players alike. I’m not even sure if it’s actually grounded in reality, but what I do know is that there’s a perception of the BC market being overtaken by foreign capital. I’ve observed a fair bit of misinformation about what’s happening in the market, and from what I’ve seen, the proportion of foreign property buyers in BC is considerably lower than what’s reported by various quarters. There’s a perception that it’s quite a big problem, and the governments have reacted accordingly, thus making it a self-fulfilling prophecy.
How does Citifund help clients navigate this market? We try to keep people as informed as possible about what’s happening so that they can plan accordingly. Managing expectations has become quite difficult in our industry because the commercial market is changing so quickly, but even so, we remain committed to finding the best possible solutions for our clients, given their circumstances – and those obviously vary greatly. We’ve got large developers who tend to be the favourites of the big banks, and even though this means the smaller developers tend to have fewer choices, we still help them find the financing that best fits their project profile.
What changes, if any, have you observed in your clients’ decision-making processes? People are extremely cautious nowadays, and that’s understandable. Pushing new supply into the market has become problematic, especially in terms of getting building permits. And taking the increased hunger for developments and development sites into account, one can understand the multiple risks that players in this market are operating under.
What about zoning concerns? What role do these play in the BC market? Major cities like Vancouver see quite a bit of growth in the numbers of both people and industries, and I do sympathize with the planning departments, because it’s really difficult to plan for the sheer volume of people that will move into a metropolitan area. These planners have to prepare for population volumes 20, 30, even 50 years down the road, and no amount of data will be sufficient to predict that. At the same time, from our side, it just seems like there’s not enough space and supply to go around.
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UPFRONT
ALTERNATIVE LENDING UPDATE
Canadians largely support tighter lending New rules are pushing more borrowers into alternative lending, but most Canadians agree with them
the measure; only 24% disagreed, while 24% remained unsure. Forty-seven per cent of those polled said they believe the new stress test protects the Canadian economy. Despite the government oversight, Scott Hannah, president of the Credit Counselling Society, warns that a dangerous cocktail of easy credit and rising home prices has lured Canadians into a debt trap that they might not escape if looming economic threats materialize.
“We’ve been in a perfect storm for a number of years ... People have been lulled into a false sense of security”
A recent study conducted by real estate information portal Zoocasa found that on the whole, Canadians remain supportive of government measures to rein in the housing market. Perhaps not surprisingly, taxes on foreign buyers proved to be most popular. The survey, released in late April, revealed that 70% of respondents from Ontario still support the province’s foreign buyer tax a year after its
NEWS BRIEFS
introduction. Support is also strong in British Columbia (77%), which imposed a similar tax. On a nationwide scale, 64% of Canadians polled support the presence of a tax on foreign buyers; 59% believe that overseas investors are driving up real estate prices in their city. The new mortgage stress test introduced by OSFI in January had fewer fans, but still, a majority (52%) of Canadians said they support
Uninsured mortgages hit eight-year high
According to recent OSFI data, Canada’s uninsured mortgage market reached an eight-year high in January, climbing 19% year-over-year to account for just over half (53%) of the $1.13 trillion worth of mortgages at Canadian banks. Insured mortgages, meanwhile, fell by 6.5% over the same period. Bloomberg reports that uninsured mortgages have represented a larger share of the country’s mortgages since 2012 as the government has progressively tightened lending measures in an attempt to prevent a US-style housing crash.
Hannah said he is seeing an influx of clients as higher financing costs begin to bite and people find it harder to manage. He cautioned that Canadians might be “caught off guard” if housing markets cool significantly. “We’ve been in a perfect storm for a number of years,” he said, highlighting the fact that low interest rates encourage borrowing and discourage saving. “People have been lulled into a false sense of security.” Canadian household credit totalled a record $2.13 trillion at the end of February, roughly doubling since 2006, according to data from the Bank of Canada. Residential mortgages accounted for 72% of that total, while the remainder consisted of credit cards, lines of credit and auto loans.
Credit unions have yet to see a surge from B-20
Although many brokers have been placing more business with credit unions since the beginning of the year, a projected surge in originations has yet to occur. Dave Schurman of FirstOntario Credit Union blamed lower refinancing volume for this apparent lethargy. “One thing B-20 has done, aside from the stress test, is it’s stopped a lot of refinances,” Schurman said. “You can refinance with your own institution even if you don’t qualify under the stress test, but you can’t refinance with another institution – you have to requalify.”
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Q&A
Ronald Alphonso
Gaining credibility from unique expertise
Principal broker MORTGAGE BROKER STORE
Years in the industry 15 Fast fact Alphonso holds an MBA in technology and innovation from Ryerson University
What has business been like for Mortgage Broker Store in recent months? The recent changes that came with the B-20 rules have made it more difficult for people to get mortgages – and the interest rate increases have made it even more difficult. For companies that specialize in this area, like ours, business has increased dramatically.
What sets your brokerage apart? Primarily, it’s our experience and knowledge in handling complicated B-class mortgages. Those with nice, straightforward commercial or A-type deals don’t really need our services. If you have problems with powers of sale or litigation, that’s where we come in. As far as I know, we’re the only mortgage brokerage in Ontario that does what we do. There are actually very few brokerages out there that have the legal knowledge and the financial resources to help people who are in real trouble. I have other brokers who send me deals because they already know no one else can do it. I’m looking at my emails right now, and about 10 are power of sales from major law enforcement firms. This is not uncommon, as I deal with all the mortgage enforcement firms on a daily basis. You’ll also notice that we’re on TV and in major news publications quite a bit. There’s a reason why those organizations come to me: They know that we prepare everything for them – file folders of legal documentation, in particular – to show that whatever they report on is correct and they can’t be sued.
Home Capital on pace for a full recovery
In announcing its first-quarter results, Home Capital CEO Yousry Bissada said the lender has bounced back from last year’s troubles and is on pace to fully recover some time this year. Home Capital saw its net income rise 13% to $34.6 million in the first three months of 2018 from the previous quarter. Total mortgage originations, meanwhile, reached $1.16 billion for the period, up by 32.9% from the previous quarter, although that figure is still a far cry from the $2.35 billion in total mortgage originations in the first three months of 2017.
What’s the most unusual case you’ve handled? What others might consider unusual is common to me. An average brokerage might think a power of sale is unusual because they don’t handle it, but for me, it’s an everyday thing. If you want to hear unusual, here’s one: A person contacted us the week ending May 11. He has seven properties in Ontario worth over $3 million total, and they were taken into foreclosure for about $500,000 to $700,000. We are advising this person on how to get these back. That is a complicated case, as the titles have already been changed. You’re talking about millions of dollars’ worth of equity being taken away. Getting all of it back? We can make it happen. You just really have to know what you’re doing. I’ve dealt with litigation ever since we started, and we do it every day.
In light of progressively higher interest rates and increasingly stricter rules, what do you think borrowers should do to prepare themselves for the near future? It’s a given that as interest rates keep increasing, more and more people are going to default. The number of people calling us has gone up dramatically, and there are plenty of people who are being forced to sell their houses due to the rising rates. For those who might be facing these kinds of problems soon, I want to let them know that a lot of what we do is pre-consulting, and we don’t charge for most of our work.
Bank of Canada reports on B-20 impact
In a recent survey of financial institutions, the Bank of Canada found that the new B-20 rules have had noticeable impact on mortgage pricing, as well as non-price conditions like credit limits and minimum payments for low-ratio mortgages and HELOCs. “Some institutions reported a decrease in demand due to regulatory changes, while others reported an increase, citing some pull-forward from applications received before the implementation of the B-20 changes, as well as expectations of higher interest rates,” the BoC said.
Laurentian Bank says it misjudged public reaction
Laurentian Bank CEO Francois Desjardins acknowledged that he underestimated the market reaction to irregularities surrounding mortgages the bank sold to a third-party buyer. Following a comprehensive review of its mortgage loans, Laurentian expects to purchase up to $392 million in loans deemed problematic by the end of the second quarter. “We certainly underestimated the sensitivity of the market to all that [touches] the mortgage sector,” Desjardins told the Canadian Press in April.
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UPFRONT
OPINION
Caution is the watchword Before making any further changes, the government needs to look at what’s happening in the market right now, writes Graeme Moss
WHEN THE Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions increased the qualifying rate by 200 basis points in January, on top of the cascade of other changes in the mortgage market, it created an environment of undue hardship at the grassroots level. Vancouver and Toronto housing values are a major concern, as is affordability. TDSR is creeping higher due to overall debt. All of this while adding 200 bps to qualify on a fixed-rate product on top of the contract rate creates a very high bar for the client, especially first-time homebuyers. CMHC and the government have made many changes to mortgage rules, some of which make sense – for instance, the new rules around foreign buyers and loan-tovalue ratios. Given that the housing market has such a significant impact on the economy, caution needs to be applied when rules are implemented. The risk of overshooting is too great and leads to the need for further changes in order to correct the market. My work has three main sectors. For the prime clients, there is Schedule A banking and monoline lending. For self-employed clients and those with impaired credit, there is equity lending, which is smaller but still vital. And finally, there’s private lending, which is now booming, but it comes with higher costs and increased risk to the client, particularly when a lender is aggressive. The effect of the new rules is felt when borrowers are forced from Schedule A banks to equity lenders or a private lender;
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it is an effect that is tremendously costly for the borrower. For example, in crude terms, the rate with an AAA lender might be approximately 3%, whereas an equity lender might charge 4.89% and a private lender 8%. For a client with a $500,000 mortgage and a 30-year amortization, that could mean the difference between a monthly mortgage
mortgage (albeit at a higher rate) when there is a problem with that mortgage. Qualifying a client at 200 basis points above the contract rate sets the bar very high and is onerous for many people, especially those on a fixed-rate contract for whom the mortgage payment is guaranteed not to budge. This qualification may bulldoze certain clients from Schedule A to equity or even private lending. When a millionaire can conceivably be forced from Schedule A into private lending, then we have a problem. The housing/banking market is a colossal engine that should only be fine-tuned after collaboration with the government, lenders and the public. Whatever is decided should be implemented gradually, with regular testing of the effect on the market. If multiple ideas are suggested and brought into play, the cumulative effect can overshoot the mark and cause problems. In addition, self-employed individuals represent a vital sector of the economy. Currently they are now being put through
“Whatever is decided should be implemented gradually, with regular testing of the effect on the market. If multiple ideas are suggested and brought into play, the cumulative effect can overshoot the mark and cause problems” payment of around $2,103 with an A lender, $2,635 with an equity lender or $3,333 with a private lender. Forcing Canadians to make higher payments further squeezes their cash flow, and as would-be homeowners cascade through the different echelons of lending, the parameters change. If forced from Schedule A to equity lending, a borrower would pay 25.3% more; if forced from Schedule A to a private lender, the borrower pays 58.5% more. The overall default risk rises, and borrowers could face more aggressive enforcement action if there is a late payment – a Schedule A lender reacts differently than a private lender who has the exact same
the mill to qualify for even an equity product. Many are forced to migrate to private lending at a much higher cost. When we make borrowing onerous for small business, we are hurting an important part of our economy. The housing/banking sector is vital for the security of our financial system. Considerable thought must be put into the cumulative effect of changes as a whole, rather than individually.
Graeme Moss is the founder of Verico Fair Mortgage Solutions, an award-winning brokerage based in Hamilton, Ontario.
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WHEN A BROKER WORKS WITH AN UNDERWRITER, THE UNIQUE QUALITIES OF THE DEAL MUST BE ACKNOWLEDGED,UNDERSTOOD, AND CONSIDERED. As a mortgage broker, you often make a personal connection with a customer. You’re helping them to buy their dream home, after all. MCAP understands this. That’s why brokers across Canada rely on us to help them make their customers’ dreams come true.
Contact your MCAP Business Development Manager or go to www.mcap.com/brokers today. MCAP Service Corporation | Ontario Mortgage Brokerage #10515 | Ontario Mortgage Administrator #11692
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17/05/2018 8:02:05 AM
PEOPLE
INDUSTRY ICON
BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS Winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award at this year’s CMAs, Paradigm Quest’s Kathy Gregory has paved the way for greater gender diversity in the mortgage industry – largely by refusing to make her gender an issue
IT’S NOT hard to understand why Kathy Gregory won the Lifetime Achievement Award at this year’s Canadian Mortgage Awards. As the head of Paradigm Quest, Gregory was the Canadian mortgage industry’s first female CEO, for starters. But to hear her tell it, her gender has never factored into anything she’s ever done. “It’s hard for anybody to start a company and get recognition in a financial and institutional environment, regardless of your gender,” she says. “It wasn’t harder because I’m a woman – it’s just harder.” However, despite her business acumen and straight-shooting demeanour, Gregory doesn’t mince words when describing some of the institutional barriers still that exist for women in the financial world. “The reality is it’s probably much easier being a female entrepreneur than it is in the banking world because we have a 150-plus-year-old banking institution that has never had a female CEO. That trickle-down effect is enormous. If I wanted to be a female CEO at one of the Big Five, that’d be a problem. It’s definitely easier to be a female entrepreneur and lead a company than to be part of the banking oligopoly.”
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Equal opportunity Throughout her career, Gregory has made a point of paying little attention to the gender disparity that’s rampant in the upper echelons of the business world.
women have steadily been making headway in leadership roles at brokerages. Yet, acknowledging the many barriers preventing women from reaching the highest levels of the industry, Gregory proffers her usual unequivocally bold
“[Don’t] lean on, or use, the fact you’re female for anything. Ignore it. If it ever comes up, ignore it again ... It’s your skill set and drive that are far more important. You need to be fearless, and with that comes decisiveness” “If I ignore it, most people will ignore it because it’s not part of our discussion,” she says. “My whole career, I’ve been in boardrooms and meeting rooms, and looking back, if I was one of two women in a meeting, I’d ignore it. Don’t let them make it part of the conversation. They may come to the table with perceived views, but your ability to convince them you’ll be a success is gender-irrelevant.” The mortgage industry in Canada is an old boys’ club no more. Over the past few decades,
advice for tomorrow’s crop of leaders. “The first thing I’d say is not to lean on, or use, the fact you’re female for anything. Ignore it. If it ever comes up, ignore it again. If you give it credence either way, you’re feeding into the bullshit. It’s your skill set and drive that are far more important. You need to be fearless, and with that comes decisiveness.” As assertive as Gregory is, she’s quick to elucidate her recipe for success. Most entrepreneurs run failed ventures – in 10 years, up
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PROFILE Name: Kathy Gregory Company: Paradigm Quest Title: President and CEO Based in: Toronto Years in the industry: 30 Career highlight: “Founding and launching Paradigm Quest, as well as everything I’ve been through to get here.” Career lowlight: “While I didn’t know it at the time, I was working in a very bureaucratic and autocratic environment in the big corporate world with little to no entrepreneurial spirit.”
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PEOPLE
INDUSTRY ICON
to 70% of startup businesses fail – but Gregory maintains that one way to buck that trend is by surrounding yourself with the brightest minds you can find. “The challenge with starting a company is that you don’t know what will go wrong, and what you think will go wrong probably won’t, and you’ll be hit out of left field,” she says. “So surround yourself with people who don’t look, sound or smell like you. They have to be different. Surround yourself with really brilliant people who have different skill sets, but operate
“We broke even our first year,” Gregory says. “The banking background changes you into a conservative planner, but we overachieved.” Today Paradigm Quest has more than $30 billion in assets under management and is one of Canada’s leading mortgage processors. Gregory admits growing Paradigm Quest into the juggernaut it is today hasn’t been without its sacrifices. “I don’t even know what work-life balance means,” she says. “It’s hard for anybody professionally to work hard and be passionate about
“The challenge with starting a company is that you don’t know what will go wrong, and what you think will go wrong probably won’t ... So surround yourself with people who don’t look, sound or smell like you. Surround yourself with really brilliant people who have different skill sets, but operate as a team” as a team. Sure, at the end of the day, the CEO makes the final decision, but he or she better make it with the best information from different skill sets. We drive this ship together. I may get most of the accolades, but it’s owed to a bunch of people.”
Finding the balance Gregory has had a decorated career, including years of experience at banks, where she developed appreciation for their inherent conservatism. When she launched Paradigm Quest in 2005, her banking background helped her steer the nascent company to $1.5 billion in originations during its inaugural year. By the end of its third year, Paradigm Quest had $5 billion in assets under management.
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their role. I was single and raised my kids alone. But Wednesday is family day for us, and my kids know there are going to be a lot of dinners and travel, so not to schedule anything on that day.” Indeed, Gregory spoke with CMP on a Wednesday – and, true to her word, she and her family were en route to the airport for a vacation. “Our Wednesday family day is not negotiable 90% of the time, and my kids like that,” she says. “They like to have that structure that mom is coming home on Wednesday. It’s a day where we put down the phone down and don’t watch TV. We’ve done it for 20 years. Everyone at work knows not to schedule any client dinners on Wednesdays. It’s the indication to my family that it’s our time that matters.”
KATHY GREGORY’S CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
1986 Takes an assistant branch manager role
1994 Becomes regional district manager at Canada Trust and takes a troubled branch from number 50 in the company to number one
2000 Following the merger of TD and Canada Trust, helps increase broker channel revenues from $700 million to $3 billion
2005 Launches Paradigm Quest
2007 Paradigm Quest hits $5 billion in assets under administration
2018 Reaches $30 billion in assets under management
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CONTACT YOUR RBM TODAY
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EQUITABLEBANK.CA
17/05/2018 8:05:48 AM
12 ANNUAL CANADIAN MORTGAGE AWARDS TH
Nearly 600 mortgage industry luminaries attended this year’s Canadian Mortgage Awards. On the following pages, CMP reveals all the winners across 21 categories
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CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE CANADIAN Mortgage Awards have become one of the industry’s longest-running traditions. This year’s awards gala at Toronto’s Liberty Grand ballroom occurred on a jubilant Friday evening replete with warm weather and sunshine. After all the upheaval caused by the new mortgage lending landscape, a night of celebration was heartily welcomed by attendees from across the country, who made up the largest crowd to date for the CMAs. One of the night’s big winners was Clinton Wilkins of Centum Home Lenders, who won the Oppono Lending Company Award for Mortgage Broker of the Year (Fewer Than 25 Employees). Wilkins told CMP that the CMAs are a great opportunity to network. “When you’re on the East Coast, you don’t get to see people all the time, but getting to come here with a group of your peers is amazing,” he said. “It’s my first time being nominated and my first time being here at the CMAs, and I think it’s the Oscars of the mortgage industry. It’s a pleasure being here and seeing a lot of people I already know, but making some new friends and new connections.” Another of the night’s big winners was Anne Brill, owner of Centum Metrocapp Wealth Solutions, who, after six years as a finalist, won the Bridgewater Bank Award for Mortgage Broker of the Year (25 Employees or More). It turns out that Brill’s first trip to the CMAs without a speech was the one where she needed it. “Every year in the past I’ve written a small speech, but not this year,” she said. “I came unprepared … I was just happy to be finalist.” Dominion Lending Centres, meanwhile, successfully defended its title as National Broker Network of the Year by funding more volume than its rivals. Read on to find out who else took home prizes on the industry’s biggest night …
ABOUT THE CMA GUIDE SPONSOR The Coalition of Independent Mortgage Brokers of Canada [CIMBC] was created to help entrepreneurial brokerages transition into building a genuine independent brand, with a solid structure and a stronger bottom line for the independent, not the network. That said, there are performance caveats attached that make sense for both lender partners and the independent. This is truly a very unique and disruptive model that those seeking to build value for their business should seriously explore by reaching out to info@cimbc.ca.
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THE CANADIAN MORTGAGE APP AWARD FOR
BEST USE OF MOBILE TECHNOLOGY WINNER
THIS AWARD truly captures the impact technology is having on
Collin Bruce
The Collin Bruce Mortgage App
FINALISTS Annie Mirza Annie Mirza Mortgage App
Ron Butler Butler Mortgage App
James Loewen Loewen Group Mortgages App
Sheri Creese Mortgage Brokers Ottawa Mortgage Calculator
Richard Ventura Mortgage InGenuity
Jake Abramowicz
the mortgage industry. Collin Bruce’s team at DLC Mortgage Mentors proved that they have their finger on the pulse with the development of their mobile app, a user-friendly and highly efficient product that their customers can use to track every step of their mortgage application. As technology continues to shake up the mortgage industry, Bruce and his team clearly understand how important it is to combine ease of use with above-and-beyond features for the everyday consumer.
“I’m surprised but humbled – it’s pretty exciting. The CMAs are the biggest awards in this industry. I’ve been fortunate to win before; it’s the biggest thing that could happen” COLLIN BRUCE
Mortgage Jake
DLC Mortgage Mentors
Jake Snowden Rate Desk
Collin Bruce DLC Mortgage Mentors
Canadian Mortgage App founder Ben Salami presented Bruce with the award, praising his team’s commitment to technological innovation. “Mobile technology is really the future,” Salami said. “Everything we do is on our phones – we even date on the phone. Mortgages are probably the next step, and brokers embracing this technology are foreshadowing the future because they need to offer their clients something more than PDFs and paper.”
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Ben Salami Canadian Mortgage App
Canadian Mortgage App is the number-one-ranked mortgage mobile app in Canada. This popular app has reached more than 5 million screen views to date and is featured in the Top 25 free business apps on both iTunes and the Google Play Store. For more information, visit canadianmortgageapp.com
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CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE AWARD FOR
LENDER UNDERWRITER OF THE YEAR WINNER Lianne Smith
Street Capital Bank of Canada
FINALISTS Alan Colby MCAP
Angela Molyneaux Equitable Bank
Christopher Park First National Third Party Underwriting (TDMS)
Dillon Charron First National Financial
Helen Brito Home Trust
Helga Peller RMG Mortgages
Katte Cai Equity Financial Trust
Robin Manuel Scotiabank
IN MANY ways, underwriters like Lianne Smith aren’t just the backbone of the mortgage industry – they’re one of the housing industry’s most crucial pillars. Working diligently on a multitude of files at any given moment, underwriters do their best to make deals work by drawing upon their vast knowledge base. Given how much potential risk lenders assume with each and every mortgage, it takes an adroit underwriter to balance that risk with the rewards – and, when necessary, exercise reserve.
“I’m honoured to have won. This recognition means a lot to me ... I’ll be advertising my award” LIANNE SMITH Street Capital Bank of Canada
Smith, a senior mortgage underwriter at Street Capital Bank of Canada, was nominated for Lender Underwriter of the Year last year, and after underwriting a slew of deals and earning yet more praise from her peers in the industry, she handily took home the prize this year.
Thomas Squires CWB Optimum Mortgage
Sheri Hedman Merix Financial
Lianne Smith Street Capital Bank of Canada
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THE AWARD FOR
DIVERSIFIER OF THE YEAR WINNER
IF IT SEEMS like Dominion Lending Centres Expert Financial
DLC Expert Financial
FINALISTS Blue Pearl Mortgage Group Centum Diversified Mortgage DLC Mortgage Mentors North East Mortgages Northwood Mortgage Mogo Verico Safebridge Financial
does it all, that’s because the brokerage does do it all – everything from simple purchases and refinances on residential and commercial real estate to commercial leasing and banking products, including TFSAs, RRSPs and GICs. Under the tutelage of broker/ owner Lorne Andrews, DLC Expert Financial has built solid relationships with real estate agents by developing tools to augment training and lead generation. After three years as a finalist, Andrews was thrilled to take home the top prize this year. “This is our fourth year we’ve been nominated in this category and our first win,” he said. “Always a bridesmaid until this year, so it’s pretty cool.”
“As the industry continues changing, it’s important to change with it. We want to thank everybody for the accolades” LORNE ANDREWS DLC Expert Financial
Lorne Andrews DLC Expert Financial
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Regulators likely aren’t finished manipulating the industry’s landscape, so it’s more imperative than ever for brokers to diversify. “In this kind of environment, the more people who can be diversified, the more their businesses will grow,” said Trevor Biggs of Key Media, the award’s sponsor and the company behind the Canadian Mortgage Awards.
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17/05/2018 9:29:38 AM
CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE FIRST SOURCE AWARD FOR
COMMERCIAL MORTGAGE BROKER OF THE YEAR WINNER Andy Anastasiou SGE Financial
FINALISTS Adit Kumar Anbros Financial
Mike Chiu Capital West Mortgage
Michel Durand Mortgage Alliance Commercial Canada
Omid Jalili OMJ Mortgage Capital
Ramin Nazaradeh Gold Capital Corp.
Tina Mu DLC Acer Mortgage
Vic Cotton Avenue Financial
Andrew C. Bennett Nexus Investment Corporation
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
THE COMMERCIAL channel isn’t for the faint of heart, but Andy Anastasiou’s dogged approach and relentless determination helped him edge out the competition, about whom he said, “There are a lot of good-looking mortgage brokers in here. Top-notch, first-class people all the way.” Nothing if not humble, Anastasiou credited his business partner, Nick Karamitsos, with helping him win this award.
“The CMAs are a really good event because they get everybody in the business together to schmooze and make some good connections” ANDY ANASTASIOU SGE Financial
As the president and co-founder of award sponsor First Source Mortgage Corporation, David Mandel recognizes just how difficult the commercial mortgage space can be. “Commercial mortgage brokerage is a difficult and wonderful step for residential mortgage brokers,” he said. “It takes on a whole different aspect of the business, and it takes a great deal of experience to be a great commercial mortgage broker and to instil the confidence that’s required to do a commercial transaction. As a commercial lender and past broker, I understand what it takes, and we’re honoured to be able to present this award.”
The SGE Financial team First Source Mortgage Corporation is a boutique mortgage lender, providing financing up to $15 million for projects in the Greater Toronto Area and surrounding areas. Since 2007, First Source has been supporting mortgage brokers, real estate advisors, builders and developers with innovative mortgage lending solutions. First Source is licensed with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario as a mortgage broker and administrator. For more information, visit firstsourcemortage.ca
Rhiannon Fillmore Loewen Group Mortgages
David Mandel
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THE CENTUM AWARD FOR
INDUSTRY SERVICE PROVIDER OF THE YEAR WINNER
EXASPERATION WITH the mortgage documentation process prompted Jason Henneberry to create a time-saving system for himself that would eventually become DocAssist. The impact DocAssist has had on the industry explains its second consecutive win in this category. “It’s a really big deal to win an award like this because it shows you’re contributing to the industry and that the industry is acknowledging it,” Henneberry said. “It’s important to acknowledge people who are doing good work.”
DocAssist
FINALISTS GoMax Solutions Finastra Paradigm Quest Teranet
“It feels amazing. It feels great to get the recognition from our peers. The team at DocAssist is working really hard to support the industry” JASON HENNEBERRY DocAssist
Technology is often described as a disruptor, but DocAssist has been wholeheartedly embraced by the industry. “I think in an ever-changing market, any tools that give the brokers an advantage and make lenders’ job easier is vital,” said Chris Turcotte, president and COO of award sponsor Centum Financial Group. “Jason winning back-to-back years is a very powerful statement. Clearly there’s a need for the service he’s providing.” PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Chris Turcotte Centum Financial Group
Jason Henneberry DocAssist
Federally incorporated in 2002, the CENTUM family is home to over 200 franchised mortgage offices with more than 2,500 mortgage professionals across Canada. As a division of the Charlwood Pacific Group, our network benefits from more than 40 years of global franchising expertise of recognized brands, which include financial services, real estate, travel service, property management and hotel accommodations. For more information, visit centum.ca
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CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE HOME TRUST AWARD FOR
ALTERNATIVE LENDING MORTGAGE BROKER OF THE YEAR WINNER Christine Xu
Mortgage Architects
FINALISTS Ameera Ameerullah Canada Mortgage & Financial Group
David Clarke DLC Finevo Lending Group
Graeme Moss Verico Fair Mortgage Solutions
Josh Wendeler Neighbourhood Dominion Lending Centres
Reza Ghazi GreenFlow Financial
Robert Jennings East Coast Mortgage Brokers
Shawn Allen Matrix Mortgage Global
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Home Trust Company is one of Canada’s leading trust companies, providing Canadians with a wide range of financial products and service alternatives, and dedicated to helping mortgage brokers help their clients realize their homeownership dreams. For more information, visit hometrust.ca
ALTHOUGH CHRISTINE XU has won this award before, she
discovered this year that some things are better the second time around. “Winning feels great,” she said. “This is the second time I’ve won, and it feels better this time.” Xu has encyclopedic knowledge of different lender guidelines, and her efficiency allows her to take on more volume and do what she does best: close deals for her clients. In fact, the majority of Xu’s business is made up of repeat clients and referrals, thanks to her unwavering principles of being honest, kind and fair. Calvin Fernandes, director of residential lending sales at award sponsor Home Trust, said that without brokers like Xu, his company wouldn’t have been around for as long as it has. “Home Trust has been in the alternative lending space for over 30 years – this is our bread and butter, and this is important to us,” he said. “I’ve been to every CMA since the beginning.”
“The CMAs are an independent vehicle that connects all the brokers and lenders together, and it gives us a platform for our industry to get together from across Calvin Fernandes the country” CHRISTINE XU
Home Trust
Mortgage Architects
Christine Xu Mortgage Architects
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THE CANADA MORTGAGE & FINANCIAL GROUP AWARD FOR
BEST NEWCOMER INDIVIDUAL AGENT/BROKER WINNER Karen Pacheco
Mortgage Architects
FINALISTS Andrew Homeyer Verico Xeva Mortgage
Asim Ali DLC Producers West Financial
Grace Reynolds Northwood Mortgage
Josh Dumencu Neighbourhood Dominion Lending Centres
Michael Sneddon DLC Edge Financial
Rhiannon Fillmore Loewen Group Mortgages
Shawn Hawkins Essential Mortgage Company – The Mortgage Centre
Sokrates Testempasis Sherwood Mortgage Group
KAREN PACHECO began her career selling homes, but her curi-
osity soon got the best of her, and before she knew it, she was a mortgage broker. Since joining Mortgage Architects two and a half years ago, Pacheco has built her business around client satisfaction, providing clients with frequent updates and an annual review. “It’s my first real award in my career, and it’s awesome,” Pacheco told CMP. “It’s hard work to be a mortgage broker, and this is that one fancy night where we all get to show off our stuff.”
“Our office staff is spread out across the country. We talk to them on the phone all the time, but now we get to meet face-to-face” KAREN PACHECO Mortgage Architects
Anthony Rossi, a Realtor with Century 21 Leading Edge who presented the award on behalf of sponsor Canada Mortgage & Financial Group, acknowledged that in the midst of an everchanging regulatory landscape, these partnerships have become more essential than ever. “I’ve been affiliated with Canada Mortgage & Financial Group for about a decade now, and Ameera Ameerullah has always been supportive of my staff, and I can only say great things about them,” Rossi said. PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Anthony Rossi Century 21 Leading Edge
Canada Mortgage and Financial Group [CMFG] is an independently owned and operated mortgage company specializing in both institutional and alternative financing in Canada and the US. We also offer a platform for international investors to invest in Canadian real estate. The company’s niche expertise is in construction finance, land acquisitions, and residential and commercial mortgages. For more information, visit cmfg.ca
Ameera Karen Pacheco Ameerullah Mortgage Architects Canada Mortgage & Financial Group 30 www.mortgagebrokernews.ca 30
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17/05/2018 9:31:03 AM
CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE STREET CAPITAL BANK OF CANADA AWARD FOR
MORTGAGE BROKERAGE OF THE YEAR (FEWER THAN 25 EMPLOYEES)
WINNER
LONDON-BASED Mortgage Wise Financial is as known for its community initiatives as it is for securing low rates for its clients. The brokerage thrives as a small team because of its deliberate effort to hire experienced, amiable agents who are willing to help each other when necessary. Steve Kissuk, senior vice-president of mortgage credit operations at award sponsor Street Capital Bank of Canada, said that large brokerages often steal the spotlight, but that shouldn’t
Mortgage Wise Financial
FINALISTS Centum Professional Mortgage Group DLC Brokers for Life DLC Clear Trust Mortgages
“Winning this means everything. It’s a lot of work to get here, and it’s finally paying off ”
DLC Estate Mortgages Durhammortgage.com – The Mortgage Centre Jayman Financial LA Mortgage Team – Mortgage Intelligence
ANDREW YOUNG
MortgagePal
diminish the contributions of smaller, community-oriented brokerages like Mortgage Wise. “This specific award is important for Street because it’s important for us to recognize not only large brokerages in our industry, but the small ones who contribute to rural areas, too,” Kissuk said. “Smaller brokerage partners don’t seem to get that same recognition, but contribute immensely to our business. That’s important.”
Mortgage Wise Financial
DLC Origin Pinsky Mortgages
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Steve Kissuk Street Capital Bank of Canada
Andrew Young Mortgage Wise Financial
Street Capital Bank of Canada is one of this country’s largest broker-channelsourced residential mortgage lenders by market share, having originated more than $40 billion since inception and currently with $25 billion in mortgages under administration. We are an approved MBS issuer/CMB seller and an approved lender with the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation [CMHC], Canada Guaranty Mortgage Insurance Company and Genworth Canada. For more information, visit streetcapital.ca
www.mortgagebrokernews.ca www.australasianlawyer.com.au
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THE AWARD FOR
BEST NEWCOMER MORTGAGE BROKERAGE WINNER Mortgage Outlet
FINALISTS Approved Financial Concrete Mortgage Capital DLC Elite Lending Mortgage Architects Experts Mission35 Mortgages MortgageGuys.com Shirl Funk Mortgages – The Mortgage Centre
MORTGAGE OUTLET is not yet three years old, but it’s already become a familiar name in the industry. The brokerage handles its lender partnerships with care – Mortgage Outlet director and mortgage broker Elan Weintraub personally meets with lenders every week to keep abreast of their products. “Treat your lenders like partners, which they are,” he said. “Don’t waste people’s time, and understand their products. If there are flaws on a deal or circumstances, have that discussion upfront because you can save hours and hours of work for the underwriter.”
“Every other time we try to slit each other’s throats and get the deal, but when you come here, you’re not competing. You just enjoy the celebration of the industry” SHAWN STILLMAN Mortgage Outlet
The Mortgage Outlet team
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Mortgage Outlet’s principal broker, Shawn Stillman, says that although the regulatory landscape changed at an inopportune time for the new brokerage, it taught them invaluable lessons early on. “It’s harder and harder to get deals done, and people don’t understand what the stress test means,” he told CMP. “They think they’re fine until it hits them in the face.” However, given the relationships this young brokerage has cultivated, it’s well positioned to weather another regulatory storm.
www.mortgagebrokernews.ca www.australasianlawyer.com.au
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17/05/2018 9:32:33 AM
CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE CIMBC AWARD FOR
LENDER BDM OF THE YEAR WINNER Susan Wishart
Street Capital Bank of Canada
FINALISTS Ajay Kaith Oppono Lending Company
Darren Campbell MCAP
Ed Wells Community Trust Company
Livia Pellegrino First National Financial
Nicole Thomson Merix Financial
Paul Jardine CWB Optimum Mortgage
Sam Samadi CMLS Financial
A GOOD BDM cultivates relationships with the most superlative
mortgage brokers and brokerages, and Susan Wishart was the best in the business last year. She played an instrumental role in helping Street Capital Bank of Canada realize one of its strongest years to date, so few will be surprised if her first CMA turns out to be one of many. “I feel humbled and a little shocked, but proud,” Wishart said. Familiar with the demands of the industry, Bob Sinclair, the new president of award sponsor CIMBC, praised Wishart for her commitment to growing Street Capital’s market share. “Being new to CIMBC and coming from the financial services industry before, this is one of the most important roles, which is really a conduit between brokers, brokerages and lenders,” Sinclair said, “and it made us excited about supporting the award.”
“It’s important to recognize the people who work hard because it pushes everyone else a little harder” SUSAN WISHART Street Capital Bank of Canada
Suzanne Fleur de Lys-Aujla Equitable Bank
Tim Hurlbut Alta West
Tomo Brank Equity Financial Trust PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
The Coalition of Independent Mortgage Brokers of Canada [CIMBC] was created to help entreprenuerial brokerages transition to building a genuine, independent brand with a solid structure and a stronger bottom line for the independent, not the network. For more information, visit cimbc.ca
Bob Sinclair CIMBC Susan Wishart Street Capital Bank of Canada
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CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE COMMUNITY TRUST AWARD FOR
ALTERNATIVE BROKER SPECIALIST OF THE YEAR (BUSINESS FOR SELF)
WINNER Akash Sharma
Able & Remarkable Mortgages
FINALISTS Jason Georgopoulos DLC Estate Mortgages
Mena Fiore Need A Mortgage – The Mortgage Centre
Rakhi Madan DLC Key Mortgage Partners
Reza Ghazi GreenFlow Financial
Susan Wang Centum Monest Financial
Lisa Abbatangelo Community Trust
IT’S ONLY his first year as a mortgage broker, but Akash Sharma has already taken the industry by storm. Like many brokers, Sharma started in the banking industry, where he learned the intricacies of the mortgage process. A rising star in the alternative lending space, Sharma will undoubtedly be looking to defend his award win next year. As Lisa Abbatangelo, VP of mortgage operations at award sponsor Community Trust, explained to CMP, brokers are instrumental to helping alternative lenders achieve their objectives. “The broker partners in this space have inspired and helped us with our own successes, and it’s about celebrating this industry in its entirety,” she said. “Whether in challenging times or good times, we want to stand next to our partners and help them with their mortgages, and raise a glass to this event.”
“I’m very thankful to Community Trust for giving me this award. Hopefully it’s an inspiration to all the young people” AKASH SHARMA Able & Remarkable Mortgages
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Akash Sharma Able & Remarkable Mortgages
Since it opened its doors in 1975, Community Trust has been proud to operate as a flexible alternative to larger, more traditional financial institutions. Community Trust offers a wide range of financial products and services, and its team prides itself on being collaborative and responsive to the needs of partners and clients alike. Above all else, Community Trust makes a stake for itself in the industry by helping borrowers, investors and business partners see their options differently. For more information, visit communitytrust.ca
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C
CIMBC IS THE BEST
KEPT SECRET
CIMBC IS UNITED BY A COMMON VISION OF BUILDING TRUSTED RELATIONSHIPS WITH ITS BROKER MEMBERS AND LENDER PARTNERS BY DELIVERING AN UNPARALLELED BUSINESS EXPERIENCE.
BRINGING INDEPENDENT BROKERS
TOGETHER
TO MAKE MEANINGFUL CHANGE
COALITION OF INDEPENDENT MORTGAGE BROKERS OF CANADA Coalition of Independent Mortgage Brokers of Canada
T: 1-416-994-4496 | INFO@CIMBC.CA | LIC: 12822 | WWW.CIMBC.CA 22-47_CMA18 Commemorative Guide-SUBBED5.indd 35
17/05/2018 12:01:33 PM
THE TRANSUNION AWARD FOR
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT IN THE MORTGAGE INDUSTRY WINNER Kathy Gregory Paradigm Quest
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Information is a powerful thing. At TransUnion, we realize that. We are dedicated to finding innovative ways information can be used to help individuals make better and smarter decisions. We help uncover the unique stories, trends and insights behind each data point, using historical information as well as alternative data sources. For more information, visit transunion.ca
FEW PEOPLE in the industry have had careers as impressive as Paradigm Quest founder, president and CEO Kathy Gregory, the winner of the TransUnion Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Mortgage Industry. The first female CEO in the Canadian mortgage industry, Gregory is a legendary figure whose company completed $1.5 billion in originations during its inaugural year and has since reached $30 billion in assets under management. Throughout her illustrious career, Gregory has also dedicated her time to several philanthropic endeavours, including founding the Canadian Mortgage Industry Women’s Networking golf tournament and the BC Women in Mortgages Leadership Summit,
“Mom has been such a pillar for our company, and she was among the top 150 women in Canada, but to me she’s just my mom” RACHELLE GREGORY Paradigm Quest
which have raised more than $165,000 to help women and children affected by domestic violence. Gregory has earned many accolades during her time in the mortgage industry, including being inducted into the Canadian Mortgage Hall of Fame and being featured in the book Canada 150 Women in honour of the country’s 150th anniversary last year. Though she’s put considerable effort into advocating for consumers and creating a winning culture at her company, Gregory credits the people surrounding her at Paradigm Quest with turning the lender into what it is today. She was not on hand at the CMAs to accept her award, but her daughter, Rachelle Gregory, Paradigm Quest’s VP of operations and customer experience, accepted the award on her behalf. “Mom has been such a pillar for our company, and she was among the top 150 women in Canada, but to me she’s just my mom,” Gregory said. “All these people acknowledging her is really great, and I’m really proud of her.”
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CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
Paul Devereaux TransUnion
Rachelle Gregory and the team at Paradigm Quest, who accepted on behalf of their founder, Kathy Gregory
Email lender notes, application, and credit bureaus to:
deals@vwrcapital.com D IMITRI K OSTUROS
Chief Operating Officer dimitri@vwrcapital.com
P AULA H UTTON
BDM - Prairies paula@vwrcapital.com
www.mortgagebrokernews.ca www.australasianlawyer.com.au
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THE CANADIAN MORTGAGES INC. AWARD FOR
PRIVATE LENDING BROKER OF THE YEAR WINNER Shawn Allen
Matrix Mortgage Global
FINALISTS Bryce Coates, Trilend Christine Xu Moneybroker – Mortgage Architects
Graeme Moss Verico Fair Mortgage Solutions
Joseph Trimboli Direct Mortgages – The Mortgage Centre
Simon Nelson, North East Mortgages Susan Gollinger, Neighbourhood Dominion Lending Centres Danielle Richard
WITH MORE THAN 100 agents under its umbrella, Matrix Mortgage Global has grown into a momentous force in the Canadian mortgage industry in its 10 years in operation, largely due to the guidance of principal broker Shawn Allen. Accepting the award on Allen’s behalf was Matrix managing broker Carla Wright, who was ecstatic that the industry has taken notice of the company’s hard work and relentless determination to get deals done.
“We’re finally being recognized, and we appreciate it. Thank you very much to CMI – we do a lot of private business with them, and we’re glad to be receiving this” CARLA WRIGHT Matrix Mortgage Global
Sunshine Financial – The Mortgage Centre
Zoltan Padar, MortgagePRO Brian Jaskolka Canadian Mortgages Inc.
The team at Matrix Mortgage Global, who accepted on behalf of Shawn Allen
The newest B-20 guidelines have put a spotlight on the private lending channel, and Bryan Jaskolka, VP and COO of award sponsor Canadian Mortgages Inc., says that as the space continues growing, it’s imperative to keep supporting its exemplary players. “Since I joined the industry,” he said, “the overall quality of the people involved and the professionalism that’s made its way to the alternative sector are really encouraging for us because we like to operate on the basis of a professional environment.” PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Canadian Mortgages Inc. [CMI] works with a wide range of public and private lenders, including banks, insurance companies, investment trusts, credit unions, private lending corporations and a diverse variety of other companies. For more information, visit cmiloans.ca
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17/05/2018 9:43:54 AM
CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE EQUITABLE BANK AWARD FOR
ALTERNATIVE BROKER SPECIALIST OF THE YEAR (NEW TO CANADA) WINNER Ameera Ameerullah
Canada Mortgage & Financial Group
FINALISTS Chuck Nash MortgageGuys.Com
Rakhi Madan DLC Key Mortgage Partners
Reza Ghazi GreenFlow Financial Corp.
Suyan Ge DLC City Wide Mortgage Services
Ameera Ameerullah Canada Mortgage & Financial Group
AMEERA AMEERULLAH picked up her second Canadian Mortgage Award in as many years, and the Canada Mortgage & Financial Group CEO says she plans to leverage this award to grow the company’s new-to-Canada program. According to Equitable Bank’s director of national sales, Joe Flor, supporting this award is the lender’s way of thanking the industry for its growth in market share. “[Equitable Bank has] grown, in terms of presence in the space and market share, and it puts us on the map with the industry leaders,” Flor said. “A lot of competitors and broker partners are in the room, so it was important to be here and recognize individuals in the industry.”
“It’s important to give recognition to people who work hard and to support the industry. It’s nice that we’re being appreciated for what we do” AMEERA AMEERULLAH Canada Mortgage and Financial Group
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Joe Flor Equitable Bank
Equitable Bank was founded in 1970 as The Equitable Trust Company and has become Canada’s ninth largest Schedule I bank. Over the past 50 years, we have been committed to improving the financial well-being of Canadians with our diverse suite of residential and commercial lending solutions, alongside our deposit products, including high-interest savings accounts and GICs. For more information, visit equitablebank.ca
www.mortgagebrokernews.ca www.australasianlawyer.com.au
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THE AWARD FOR
OUTSTANDING PHILANTHROPY & COMMUNITY SERVICE WINNER Dave Teixeira
Dominion Lending Centres
FINALISTS DLC Elite Lending Elite Cares Society
Invis/Mortgage Intelligence Janna Dawdy RMA JCMortgages
Sabeena Bubber Verico Xeva Mortgage/100 Brokers
Sharon Vander Duim Neighbourhood Dominion Lending Centres
Sherry Corbitt Sherry Corbitt Team – Mortgage Intelligence
Tracy Axford Durhammortgage.com – The Mortgage Centre
DAVE TEIXEIRA is one of the most recognizable faces in the
Canadian mortgage industry, but his commitment transcends helping DLC grow into the country’s premier broker network. Outside of his duties at DLC, Teixeira has worked closely with Darcy Clark, whose family was felled by unimaginable tragedy. “Winning a CMA is great,” Teixeira said, “but this goes out to the family of Darcy Clark, whose three children were murdered by her ex-husband just 10 years ago. The work I’ve done with her is so fulfilling. To see her and her courageous nature and the ability to work together to change the criminal code of Canada, that’s what this award is for. It’s for them.”
“I’m so honoured be holding this, but it’s really for all those people who benefit from community work and all those people in this room who do great work” DAVE TEIXEIRA Dominion Lending Centres
Verico Financial Group Verico Helping Hands
Dave Teixeira Dominion Lending Centres
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17/05/2018 9:43:59 AM
CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE AWARD FOR
MORTGAGE INDUSTRY EMPLOYER OF CHOICE WINNER Solidifi
FINALISTS Blue Pearl Mortgage Group CanWise Financial Champion Mortgage CWB Optimum Mortgage Durhammortgage.com – The Mortgage Centre Lendesk MCAP Mortgage Brokers Ottawa Neighbourhood Dominion Lending Centres
IN AN INDUSTRY replete with excellent companies, choosing the winner of this award was a difficult task for this year’s judges. Property appraisers are, in many ways, the backbone of the entire real estate industry – without them, mortgages wouldn’t be funded as swiftly. Solidifi proved itself a venerable force in the property appraisal space this year. According to Cathy Magoutis, Solidifi’s VP of operations and business development, the company goes above and beyond for its employees. “I feel fantastic, and I’m very proud to work for Solidifi,” she said.
“We get to spend time with industry partners, so this is a great night and a great event, and it’s absolutely great for networking” CATHY MAGOUTIS Solidifi
Sherwood Mortgage Group Verico The Mortgage Professionals
The Solidifi team
www.mortgagebrokernews.ca www.australasianlawyer.com.au
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THE AWARD FOR
MORTGAGE BROKERAGE OF THE YEAR (25 EMPLOYEES OR MORE) WINNER CanWise Financial
FINALISTS DLC Canadian Mortgage Experts DLC Home Capital Solutions Matrix Mortgage Global Neighbourhood Dominion Lending Centres Pilrock Mortgages – The Mortgage Centre Rock Capital Investments Sherwood Mortgage Group Ultimate Mortgage & Finance Solutions Verico The Mortgage Professionals Verico Xeva Mortgage
A YEAR after winning the CMA for Best Newcomer Mortgage Brokerage, CanWise Financial has become an unstoppable force in the Canadian mortgage industry – and, with four award nominations this year, and a staple of the Canadian Mortgage Awards. “We were
“This is our second award in two years, so we’re super pumped to get this” JAMES LAIRD CanWise Financial
nominated in four categories, and we’re glad to get at least one,” said CanWise president James Laird. According to CMA judge Natalka Falcomer, recognizing the entrepreneurial spirit is imperative because it inspires others to take a similar plunge. “It’s not only a way of recognizing work; it’s a way of inspiring those who are working towards that end – that’s why it’s important,” Falcomer said. “It’s so difficult that when reviewing the nominations, I thought to myself, ‘How unfair that I can only pick one person!’ There were so many stories behind every single finalist that it almost felt impossible to judge.””
The team at CanWise Financial
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17/05/2018 9:44:46 AM
CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE MANULIFE BANK AWARD FOR
OUTSTANDING CUSTOMER SERVICE (INDIVIDUAL OFFICE) WINNER
LED BY president and principal broker Dalia Barsoum – who’s among the most recognized faces in the industry – Streetwise Mortgages specializes in, among other things, helping the selfemployed secure lending solutions. That task has become invariably harder since January 1, but it’s just a day at the office for Barsoum and the Streetwise team. Another specialty offered by Streetwise Mortgages is helping clients through separation and divorce – services that require a great deal of care, understanding and outstanding customer service.
Verico Streetwise Mortgages
FINALISTS Blue Pearl Mortgage Group CanWise Financial Centum Professional Mortgage Group
“This is an incredible moment for our team to win this award. We’re very, very thrilled and honoured”
DLC GLM Mortgage Group LA Mortgage Team – Mortgage Intelligence Rasha Ingratta & Associates – Mortgage Intelligence
DALIA BARSOUM
Verico Mortgage House Corp.
Streetwise Mortgages
According to Fiona Campbell, regional director for Eastern Canada at award sponsor Manulife Bank, bestowing upon clients the same superlative service we all expect for ourselves is paramount in this industry. “It’s about customer service,” Campbell said. “It’s all about satisfying your client, whether it’s a mortgage broker or the end client. For us, this is a very important award.”
Fiona Campbell Manulife Bank
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Dalia Barsoum Verico Streetwise Mortgages
Manulife Bank serves clients across Canada in all provinces and territories. With a high-quality portfolio of loans, the majority of which are in residential mortgages, Manulife Bank is a profitable and well capitalized organization. For more information, visit manulifebank.ca
www.mortgagebrokernews.ca www.australasianlawyer.com.au
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THE OPPONO LENDING COMPANY AWARD FOR MORTGAGE BROKER OF THE YEAR (FEWER THAN 25 EMPLOYEES) WINNER Clinton Wilkins Centum Home Lenders
FINALISTS Alison Lopes DLC Premier Mortgages
Angela Calla DLC Angela Calla Mortgage Team
Barry Baboolal DLC BMB Mortgage Partners
Elvis Hui DLC Guaranti Mortgage Corp.
Janna Dawdy RMA JCMortgages
Joe Sammut Mortgage Gate Group – Mortgage Architects
Jordan D’Haese Jayman Financial
CLINTON WILKINS was on fire last year. He completed 230 transactions totalling $50 million – numbers that are especially impressive in light of the fact that Wilkins is based in Halifax. “I think it’s amazing,” Wilkins said upon receiving his award. “Being nominated is a great achievement, but at the end of the day, this puts Halifax on the map. A lot of good things are happening on the East Coast, but Atlantic Canada is sometimes underserviced. It’s one of the first times an Atlantic Canadian has won here at the CMAs, so this is for Atlantic Canada.” Raj Babber, founder and CEO of award sponsor Oppono Lending Company, said the lender threw its weight behind this award because it values its broker partners. “We felt it was very important to sponsor an award because we are a lender, and a lot of our brokers are here tonight,” Babber said. “What we’re seeing are true professionals in our industry, especially the finalists here tonight. These are the industry’s best.”
“It’s my first time being nominated and my first time being here at the CMAs. I think it’s the Oscars of the mortgage industry”
Karen Gibbard
CLINTON WILKINS
Verico Gibbard Group Financial
Centum Home Lenders
Michelle Campbell Mortgage District – Mortgage Architects
Paul Meredith
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
CityCan Financial
Sharnjit Gill Verico Superior Mortgage
Oppono Lending Company’s philosophy always has been and will continue to be a common-sense approach to lending, designed to meet your needs with first and second mortgages. Oppono’s business is broker-focused and customer-service-oriented. We have developed a technology-driven approval structure that features fast turnarounds, a simplified underwriting process, extended working hours and a commitment to funding. For more information, visit oppono.com
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17/05/2018 9:45:53 AM
CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
Raji Uppal Oppono Lending Company
Raj Babber Oppono Lending Company
Clinton Wilkins Centum Home Lenders
www.mortgagebrokernews.ca www.australasianlawyer.com.au
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17/05/2018 9:46:00 AM
THE BRIDGEWATER BANK AWARD FOR
MORTGAGE BROKER OF THE YEAR (25 EMPLOYEES OR MORE) WINNER Anne Brill Centum Metrocapp Wealth Solutions
FINALISTS Bryan Jaskolka Canadian Mortgages Inc.
Collin Bruce DLC Mortgage Mentors
Dave Butler Butler Mortgage
Eden Simari Quantus Mortgage Solutions
James Laird CanWise Financial
Kerri Reed Verico Premiere Mortgage Centre
Mitch Thibodeau Verico The Mortgage Professionals
Skye McLean Axiom Mortgage Solutions
A MAJOR reason behind the success of Centum Metrocapp Wealth Solutions is owner Anne Brill’s cardinal rule: Make 10 phone calls every day. Brill can’t remember the last time she deviated from it, so it’s no wonder she won Mortgage Broker of the Year. Impressively, most of Brill’s business comes from referrals and existing clients. “I’m not a one-woman show,” she said. “I have a team, and everyone makes me look good.” Jason Provencher, manager of sales solutions at award sponsor Bridgewater Bank, applauded the tireless work brokers do every day. “It’s evident for me that we work in the best industry ever, with a lot of professionalism and giving back,” Provencher said. “If it wasn’t for these broker offices, we wouldn’t have been in the industry for 22 years.”
“This is my sixth year as a finalist in various categories, but my first win ever. I was flabbergasted, but I’m honoured and humbled” ANNE BRILL Centum Metrocapp Wealth Solutions
Anne Brill Centum Metrocapp Wealth Solutions
Steven Levine True North Mortgage
Kim McKenney DLC The Mortgage Source PROUDLY SPONSORED BY
Jason Provencher Bridgewater Bank
Bridgewater Bank is a Canadian Schedule I chartered bank offering competitive residential mortgages and deposit products through a select network of brokers. Specializing in alternative lending and construction mortgage solutions, the bank’s portfolio has grown to more than $2.8 billion. For more information, visit bwbbrokerinfo.ca
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17/05/2018 9:46:21 AM
CMA GUIDE BROUGHT TO YOU BY
THE AWARD FOR
NATIONAL BROKER NETWORK OF THE YEAR WINNER
LED BY industry luminary Gary Mauris, Dominion Lending Centres proved that mortgage rule changes won’t stand in its way, funding more volume than its rivals last year. Mauris extolled his large team’s effort and commitment to ensuring that, even in the face of external forces, DLC is worth its weight in gold. This is the second consecutive year DLC has been named National Broker Network of the Year – a testament to its supremacy in the broker channel – and Mauris said winning the award made every drop of blood, sweat and tears a worthwhile trade-off.
Dominion Lending Centres
FINALISTS Broker Financial Group Centum Financial Group Invis/Mortgage Intelligence Mortgage Alliance
“We had a great night. Great awards, always put on exceptionally well, and it’s nice to see people and take home some hardware, too”
Mortgage Architects Mortgage Centre Canada TMG The Mortgage Group Verico Financial Group
GARY MAURIS Dominion Lending Centres
Gary Mauris Dominion Lending Centres Chris Kayat Dominion Lending Centres
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SPECIAL PROMOTIONAL FEATURE
ALTERNATIVE LENDING
The five Cs of credit in action Home Trust’s Mike Forshee explains how the alternative lender uses the five Cs of credit to make decisions on your clients’ files
THIS YEAR, I have had the pleasure of speaking at several stops of the MPC Symposium series, where I discussed the impact that the B-20 guidelines are having on our industry and alternative lending. As part of my presentation, I looked at how B-20 was likely to further increase the alternative mortgage business and how brokers can better position themselves to capture more of this growing market segment. During the Q&A sessions, and especially in the conversations I had with attendees afterwards, the discussion focused on how brokers with limited experience in the alternative space can recalibrate their focus to expand their Alt-A business. My feedback to these brokers was that the underlying principles for preparing an Alt-A application are essentially the same as for a prime mortgage, but when it comes to Alt-A deals, it is necessary to provide a more complete story to the underwriter. Factor in the more stringent qualifying requirements in place now, and it is even more critical to provide as much detail and context as possible. We have to not only validate income, but also verify it and determine the overall creditworthiness of the borrower and their capacity to service the mortgage. Naturally, this led to two questions: First, just what did I mean by “tell a more complete story”, and how can Home Trust approve
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deals other lenders decline? These two questions are very much related, as I’ll discuss in a moment. But before we get into that, let me be clear that Home Trust does not approve deals that other lenders reject simply because we’re willing to take on more risk. What we are willing to do, however, is to spend the necessary time to fully understand the details and get to know the applicant. Our record speaks for itself: Home Trust’s default rate is on par with, or better than, the prime financial institutions. This is testament to the expertise of our underwriting process, and it is this factor that differentiates Home Trust from many other alternative mortgage lenders.
application with the details required by our underwriting team.
The five Cs of credit and risk-based pricing The five Cs are, in reality, just another form of the standard ‘know your client’ approach used to some degree by all financial institutions. This process is critical in the application of risk-based pricing, where the interest rate offered by the financial institution reflects the credit risk associated with a particular file. Understanding each of the five Cs, and how Home Trust has slightly enhanced each one to align with our specific business model and risk appetite, will provide you with a better view on how to package a mortgage
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Character
An applicant’s character, including credit history and credit score, is the primary means by which underwriters evaluate the creditworthiness of an individual. This is an important indicator, and many lenders will reject an applicant whose credit score falls below their threshold without any further review. Home Trust also places significant weighting on credit scores, but in situations where an applicant’s score is lower than ideal, we want to review the circumstances leading to the credit downgrade.
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Home Trust does not approve deals that other lenders reject simply because we’re willing to take on more risk. What we are willing to do, however, is to spend the necessary time to fully understand the details For instance, commonplace occurrences such as a prolonged illness or a divorce can negatively impact an applicant’s credit. In order to understand the events leading to a credit downgrade, we need to understand
both the cause of the downgrade and, more importantly, the cure. Using divorce as an example, divorce proceedings are, by their very nature, tremendously disruptive, not to mention extremely
costly. Assets can be tied up for a prolonged period as the process to determine the division of matrimonial property works its way through the legal system. However, if you can show that the applicant will receive assets such as the proceeds from the sale of the matrimonial home once the divorce is finalized, this can provide a cure for the applicant’s credit concerns. This is a prime example of where brokers should include that extra level of detail in the application notes to provide the additional information our underwriters need to resolve potential problems that, without a sufficient explanation, could result in the application’s denial.
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SPECIAL PROMOTIONAL FEATURE
ALTERNATIVE LENDING
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Capacity
Capacity is about more than just income. What we want to see here is that the client has the ability to service the loan. This is especially important for those with irregular incomes, as this involves a much deeper examination of income than simply looking at a couple of recent pay stubs. For instance, clients who are self-employed or who work in positions where a significant portion of their pay is derived from commissions or performance bonuses can see wide fluctuations in their month-to-month income. This can make it challenging to assess an applicant’s true capacity and is one of the reasons why many financial institutions decline those with such income arrangements. Home Trust specializes in lending to those with irregular incomes, and our many years of business-for-self experience allow us to accurately evaluate a self-employed client’s capacity. In evaluating the client’s income, we take into consideration such things as cash flowing through bank accounts, outstanding invoices, pending orders and liquid assets to help verify that the client’s business is a going concern and is operating from a strong financial position. Of course, we need documentation to support this review, and we routinely work
with our broker partners to gather the approved documents required to support the mortgage application.
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Collateral
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Capital
Collateral refers specifically to the property that is being purchased. As the actual security for the loan, this is an important consideration, and our underwriters spend significant time reviewing all aspects of the property. We require an accurate valuation of the property, and we need specifics – including location, age and overall condition – to determine a value. We also require this to be verified by an approved third party. In addition, we look at how the property conforms with the local neighbourhood, as the surrounding area has a considerable impact on the true market value. We also take note of the pride of ownership a homeowner places in their home. It’s not a coincidence that those who take good care of their home tend to also have a good track record of repayment.
With respect to capital, we consider the type of employment and the applicant’s tenure in that position; available assets, including other properties and liquid assets;
THE FIVE Cs OF CREDIT
Character Understand the client’s credit history and explain the circumstances for any and all missed payments that have caused bruised credit and lower credit scores
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Capacity Measure the borrower’s ability to repay the loan by assessing current income, income sustainability, other debt and overall cash flow
Collateral Determine the value of the property, purchase date, recent or required renovations, and other liens and characteristics
Capital Demonstrate the amount for the down payment, savings, net worth, liquidity and other assets, and consider the source and location of funds
Conditions Assess economic conditions, local real estate factors and interest rate trends, plus the client’s intended purpose of loan and ability to satisfy documentation requirements and asset confirmation
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and overall net worth. As I discussed in the capacity section, for applicants with irregular incomes, available capital can be very helpful in bolstering the application. One of the scenarios we routinely see involves recently retired individuals planning to purchase their retirement home. In some cases, they may require a short-term mortgage to purchase the new property, as they intend to stay in their current home until they’ve had a chance to complete the necessary renovations to turn their retirement home into their dream home. Because they can now only declare their retirement income – which is typically less than the income they earned while working – they may have difficulty qualifying for the amount they wish to borrow. However, in addition to their stated retirement income, they also have sizeable liquid assets in the form of accumulated savings, as well as their existing home, which they intend to sell once renovations on their retirement home are complete. In this case, it is clear that the individual has sufficient additional assets to ensure they can afford the mortgage, despite having a relatively moderate regular monthly income. This is a very common example of how Home Trust assesses all five Cs together to get a complete and accurate picture of every applicant.
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Conditions
Finally, there are the conditions – the underlying aspects of the deal, including the terms of the mortgage and the supporting documents required to provide confirmation of the applicant’s finances, as well as the property itself. Because this touches on the other categories, I see conditions as the element that brings all five Cs together to provide the complete story for our underwriters. With confirmation of these important considerations, the underwriter can determine if it is appropriate to move forward with the deal. If so, the final conditions of the mortgage offer, including the approved principal amount, the interest rate and the term of
the mortgage, are included in a commitment letter for the broker to share with the client.
Tying it all together I hope this overview of how Home Trust uses the five Cs of credit has been helpful in explaining the importance of telling a
Many lenders will reject an applicant whose credit score falls below their threshold without any further review ... In situations where an applicant’s score is lower than ideal, we want to review the circumstances leading to the credit downgrade complete story. I also hope it shows how Home Trust uses this information to make an extremely well informed decision on all alternative mortgage applications we receive and how we are committed to working with our broker partners to provide, where possible, a positive result for the client. In order to do this, however, we rely on you to provide the extra detail we need to review the file. Supporting documents and the inclusion of additional notes within the application are the means by which you can provide this information, which ultimately gives us the full story for each application. If you have any questions about our use of the five Cs of credit or need assistance with any other matter, please contact your Home Trust representative, who will be more than happy to provide you with additional guidance. Thank you for your continued support, and let’s all get ready for what is already shaping up to be a busy summer season.
Mike Forshee is Home Trust’s senior vicepresident of residential underwriting.
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PEOPLE
BROKER INSIGHT
When the going gets tough Industry veteran Enza Venuto of InTouch Mortgage Solutions tells CMP how she’s navigating today’s challenging mortgage market
CMP: How did you get into mortgage brokering? Enza Venuto: In 2005, my career as an independent broker began. Before that, I worked with one of the Big Five banks, and I was one of the top 10 in Canada in mortgage financing. That success just created even more passion for the industry and made me want to continue working in the mortgage space. I got the golden handshake from the bank in 2005, which turned out to be a blessing, because it opened the door for me to become an entrepreneur in the mortgage industry.
CMP: How would you describe your time in the industry? EV: There have been ups and downs. Right now, everyone is saying it’s not a good time to get into the mortgage industry, but I think it’s always the right time. If you understand what you’re doing and how you’re doing it, you will definitely be very successful in this industry.
CMP: How do you navigate tough market conditions? EV: As a mortgage broker or agent, you need to wear different hats in order to get through the tough times. We need to be in regular contact with clients and educate ourselves so that we can follow the new guidelines and understand how each client fits into those guidelines. You need to understand where
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you want to be in these challenging times and focus on branding yourself in different areas. I brand myself in alternative lending and in real estate financing. I went down that path because I am a firm believer in being a financial advisor and not an order-taker. To do that, you need to be able to help position the client correctly by strategizing with them. If you become an order-taker, the client will tell you where to go and what to do. When you tell the client what they need to work on, that’s how you help them find the best solution.
CMP: Have you noticed more clients being forced into the alternative space recently? EV: Yes, although the alternative space has also become more limited. These alternative channels need to fit the client, because if they don’t, we have to take clients outside of the space. Sometimes the banks’ models are very restrictive, so we need to work with alternative lenders. They look at files differently because they don’t have a contractual rate and are not restricted in the same way.
CMP: How have you been able to keep growing your business? EV: By building on relationships – not just
CMP: What markets do you focus on, and how has business been so far this year? EV: We operate in Toronto, the GTA,
referral relationships, but client relationships, too. I am in constant contact with clients, and that’s why I called my company InTouch Mortgage Solutions. We try to simplify our clients’ financing needs and remove the stress from the whole process.
Hamilton, Grimsby, Bradford, Brampton – we work with clients all over the place, although I don’t work outside Ontario. I say that I need to be able feel and touch where I am lending. I can’t complain about how business has
VENUTO’S TIPS FOR OTHER BROKERS “Stay positive. Educate yourself as much as possible on everything related to the mortgage business, and stay in contact with your clients and referral sources. Also, be in front of clients at all times. Create a marketing strategy that enables you to be in your clients’ minds, and don’t be afraid to ask for referrals at the end of your closing. When a client says you’re amazing, ask them to refer you to their friends and family.”
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FAST FACTS: ENZA VENUTO
Founder, principal broker and financial mortgage advisor at InTouch Mortgage Solutions
Operates in Toronto and the GTA, as well as Hamilton, Grimsby, Bradford and Brampton
Has been an independent mortgage broker for 13 years and has 45 years of financial industry experience
“Everyone is saying it’s not a good time to get into the mortgage industry, but I think it’s always the right time. If you understand what you’re doing and how you’re doing it, you will definitely be very successful” been. We are a boutique-type brokerage, and we work with 10 agents. Across the board, the industry is feeling it, and we are not booming like we were last year around this time, but things aren’t bad. This year is going to be a very different year. This year we are working with more alternative lenders, and although volume will be lower, revenue will be higher.
CMP: What do you get up to in your spare time? EV: I love to watch movies and cook. I also like going for walks with my husband and my dog, and my husband and I enjoy travelling. I sometimes try to stay away from the industry and stop thinking about it, but when you have so much passion for something, it can be hard.
Previously owner and principal broker of Centum Streetwise Mortgages
Has brokered more than $2.1 billion in funded mortgages to date
A strong supporter of women in business and local entrepreneurs
Has repeatedly been named to CMP’s Hot List, Women of Influence and Top 75 Brokers
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SPECIAL PROMOTIONAL FEATURE
COMMERCIAL SERIES
Making the most of your documentation Proper documentation is essential for a successful commercial file. The Financing Hub’s Paul McGill outlines two important documents no submission should be without
IN THIS instalment of our commercial series, I’d like to talk about one of the more crucial elements of building a great commercial application: compiling the needed documentation. As I’ve said before, no two commercial transactions are alike. It’s your job as the submitting agent or broker to tell the full story about the transaction and all of its components. Documentation is a big part of how you do that. Tax and zoning confirmations, borrower financial statements, copies of lease agreements – all of these documents are important in helping your lender assess the deal. Far too often, however, I see agents not submitting a full set of documents upfront because they want the lender to ask for them first. There’s a perception that this means the lender is serious, but those who think holding back documentation can help in some way have it completely wrong. All you’ve done is set yourself apart in the lender’s mind as a newbie rather than an experienced professional and reduced the chances the lender will want to do the deal. For them, it’s a sign that they’re going to have to struggle to get the deal completed or, if the deal does get funded, that they’re going to have problems with the borrower post-funding. Do your client a favour by getting them
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off on the right foot with the lender, and do yourself a favour by being a professional and getting more deals closed. All documents can and should be brought into the narrative you’re creating for your lenders. Don’t just add them as attachments without explanations. Make sure you include the information they present directly into your sales pitch for the funding. While there are any number of documents
Rent rolls Rent rolls are a pretty straightforward form. You can build your own in Excel, or we have a sample on the Financing Hub that you can download. A typical rent roll will identify each rental unit, the tenant, the unit’s square footage, and the net and gross rents. Net rent is the rent the tenant will pay over the course of the lease before additional or common charges
Those who think holding back documentation can help in some way have it completely wrong. All you’ve done is set yourself apart in the lender’s mind as a newbie rather than an experienced professional and reduced the chances the lender will want to do the deal required, depending on the type of commercial submission, I’d like to hone in on two standard documents used for virtually every type of rental property application: rent rolls and building operating statements. Let’s take a look at what they are and, more importantly, talk about how they can be used to strengthen your submissions.
are added. For example, I might be paying net rent of $9,567 per month on a five-year lease. That amount doesn’t usually change unless there are specific conditions for an increase in the lease terms. Gross rent adds in common charges such as taxes, common area charges and maintenance. Each year, the common charges can
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change. The lease will likely state what the common charges are, but the yearly amount allocated to them can change. These floating common charges protect the net income of the building from fluctuating from year to year if something like utility rates change. This is important to both the owner and the lender, who are counting on stable cash flows to ensure timely mortgage payments. Rent rolls will often set out other details as well, such as tenant start dates, when the lease expires and if there are renewal options. Let’s take a look at all the information you’ve provided your lender in just that one document. You’ve given them important details on the income that’s going to be used
to pay back their loan. The lender now has a view of the stability of those rental revenues. They also have a picture of the type of tenant occupying the property and whether they are long-term tenants or more transient. They can identify an anchor tenant by what percentage of the building they occupy, and they know how long they can rely on the anchor to contribute to rental revenues. The lender can also see from the net and gross rents if the rents are competitively priced. With this, they can get a sense of whether the building will have trouble attracting new tenants in the future. But the best thing about providing all of this information is that you get to see it all
first. With just a short review of the rent roll, you can see the strengths and the weaknesses it identifies, and you can make sure both are properly addressed in the submission. These are all points the lender will uncover in their due diligence anyway, but a good commercial broker understands the advantages of addressing weaknesses and proposing solutions upfront, in addition to really selling the strong points.
Operating statements Whether you’re trying to secure funding for a multi-family property, an office building or an industrial space, the underlying property should cover its expenses and debt servicing
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SPECIAL PROMOTIONAL FEATURE
COMMERCIAL SERIES
These are all points the lender will uncover in their due diligence anyway, but a good commercial broker understands the advantages of addressing weaknesses and proposing solutions upfront, in addition to really selling the strong points from stand-alone building revenues. This is why the building’s operating statement is an essential document to provide your lender as part of your initial submission. For those of you not familiar with building operating statements, they are a specific form of income statement that, in most cases, reports on the financial accounts of a single property. Your borrower might own multiple properties; the financial results of all of those buildings get accumulated and reported in the borrower’s financial statements. The building’s operating statement provides the lender with a clear view of just the building they are being asked to finance. The operating statement will show all of the building’s revenues – rents, parking revenues if the building charges for parking,
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etc. – along with the common charges like taxes, utilities and maintenance fees. It will also report all of the expenses not captured in the common charges, including separate lines for mortgage interest. You should review the operating statement for items that need to be highlighted in the submission story. Are parking fees or other revenues substantial? If so, you should bring them to the lender’s attention. Do common charges capture almost all of the annual expenses outside of mortgage interest? Add a note about this positive aspect of the building’s cash flow. By segregating the interest charges out, does that give you the ability to assess whether P&I payment options are right for your funding request? Again, this is great information for your lender to use in their adjudication process, and therefore great information for you to use when developing your submission. If you haven’t been providing these two documents with every commercial submission, start today. Come across as the professional you want to be recognized as. Learn to recognize the insights these two documents will give you and use them to compile even better commercial mortgage applications. In closing, I’d like to thank everyone involved in our recent follow-up webinar to my article in the last issue about telling the right story for a successful commercial submissions. It was a great success. I personally would like to thank our panellists, Michel Durand from Mortgage Alliance Commercial Canada and Justin Kowal from Firm Capital. I’d also like to thank our sponsor, Merix Financial. For those of you looking to join us at our next webinar in June, the registration form is on our website, thefinancinghub.com.
Paul McGill is president of The Financing Hub, which is dedicated to delivering effective digital solutions for commercial real estate financing.
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More Options. More Lenders. More Solutions.
The Financing Hub Brings Online Technology to the Commercial Mortgage Application Process Discover More:
www.TheFinancingHub.com In exclusive partnership with MERIX Financial
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FEATURES
NETWORKING
How to build a network that drives your success Assembling everyone from your pit crew to your butt-kickers involves much more than cocktails and canapés, writes speaker and author Janine Garner HOW MANY times have you been told that networking is “essential for your growth and personal success”? And yet when it comes to networking, many of us are overwhelmed by the pressure of where to start, confused by what appears to be an overcomplicated world of opportunities to connect online and offline, and overstretched by the demands on our time. The truth is, the adage “It’s not what you know; it’s who you know” has significantly more weight in this 21st-century world of busyness, in which jobs are filled before they are advertised, previously un-thought-of collaborations appear out of nowhere to create new and competitive markets, forming referral relationships is increasingly hard to do yet is critical to business growth, and everyone seems to be friends with everyone else on social media. A Harvard Business Review article entitled “Managing Yourself: A Smarter Way to Network” found that “the executives who consistently rank in the top 20% of their companies in both performance and wellbeing have diverse but select networks … made up of high-quality relationships with people who come from several different spheres and from up and down the corporate hierarchy.” So, the questions to ask are:
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Who is in your network? How much input or influence do they really have on what you’re doing or trying to achieve? How much do they truly know you and your goals? How much can they help you? Effective networking has to be about the genuine – about the interplay of a select group of people who are working closely together, strategically creating plans to succeed. Here are three key tips to building a network that works:
Identify your critical few British anthropologist Robin Dunbar posited that there is a limit to the number of relationships humans can comfortably maintain – 150, to be precise. He suggested this is the number we can manage to maintain stable relationships with – remembering each other’s names, keeping in contact and doing each other favours. Anything more than this, he said, would result in the creation of other subgroups and tribes. Momentum starts with a significantly smaller circle of influence that you are securely
in the centre of, rather than being mixed in somewhere with all the other participants. A small group of people providing quality thinking and behaviours will push you further than you could ever go alone. An effective network bridges a smaller number of more diverse individuals with differing levels of expertise and varying ages, genders and experience. Such networks are cross-functional, cross-hierarchical and cross-industry, delivering balance and diverse thinking. Identify the quality of people you surround yourself with, not the quantity. So, who are the right people to have in your network? Find your personal cheer squad – your promoters. According to research from the Center for Talent Innovation, people with promoters are 23% more likely to move up in their careers than those without sponsors. Your own personal cheerleading squad is key to your success. They are by your side through thick and thin, never giving up on you, always dreaming big with you. Get your support team in place – your pit crew. Your pit crew can make or break a race. They add stamina to help you run the
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Successful networking is about under standing the connections you should be making, as opposed to those you are making. It’s about asking who you need to surround yourself with to inspire you and help you grow. It’s about being brave enough to seek out and connect with new individuals.
Exchange value
marathon of your dreams, navigate complexities and recover from setbacks. They help you learn from mistakes and keep pushing you on anyway. They celebrate your wins, remind you of your achievements and keep it real. There’s no doubt that climbing the ladder of success can be a lonely task that requires grit, determination and perseverance. Having the right crew to help you overcome any difficulties and challenges, and keep you mentally tough and balanced, is essential. Discover people who make you better every day – your teachers. Harvard professor Linda Hill says, “You can’t think of something new unless you are being pushed to think in new directions, and you can’t do that unless you are engaging with people who have a different viewpoint.” A life of continuous learning is essential to growth. The right teachers teach you mastery, guide and stretch your thinking, challenge your ideas, and encourage you to keep learning, because they know that this constant curiosity creates real opportunity for growth, achievement and success.
Have some accountability buddies – your butt-kickers. Linda Galindo, author of The 85% Solution: How Personal Accountability Guarantees Success, believes butt-kickers are our secret weapon for success. “Working with a partner prevents the ready-fire-aim approach that a lot of entrepreneurs use,” she says. Love them or hate them, we all need buttkickers – those individuals who help accelerate the journey, pushing you to do more and holding you accountable for your actions. Butt-kickers listen to your dreams and accelerate your goals by making sure you stick to them. They hold you accountable for your actions and decisions and ensure you do what you say you’re going to do – and then some.
Find ways to constantly add value. Ask yourself if you're doing enough with and for your connections. Consider what more you could do to add value to them and their businesses. Model the behaviour you seek in return. Give knowledge unconditionally, open doors willingly, and share insight to drive continued growth and success for others in order to attract them and engage with them. Richard Branson famously said that “nobody can be successful alone,” and in our fast-moving business world, we all need a network that works for us. Take a long, hard look at your network and ask yourself: Who really matters? Who is teaching you mastery and knowledge? Who is the key influencer pushing you to be and do more, holding you accountable to your dreams? Who is promoting you, acting as your personal cheer squad, inspiring you to become more? Who is keeping you balanced and aligned, caring and connecting you with others? Choose your network wisely. Build a circle around you that allows you to transform and become so much more.
Be brave and diversify Step out of your comfort zone, strategically expand your circle of influence, diversify your connections, and explore other people, businesses and experiences. Consciously consider who else you need to learn from, add value to, engage and collaborate with.
Janine Garner is an internationally acclaimed Fortune 500 mentor, keynote speaker and author of It’s Who You Know: How a Network of 12 Key People Can Fasttrack Your Success.
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FEATURES
REPORTING
Command and control Business strategist Matt Malouf talks through the reports and feedback you need to keep your business running at full speed
REPORTING AND accountability are essential for you to understand what is going on in your business and ensure that tasks are getting done at the correct time and to the standard you expect. Regardless of the size of your business, having your team report to you regularly will be a great measure of their productivity and will inevitably improve yours. Now, don’t stress and think that the reporting I’m talking about is going to be more work. In fact, reporting will be a vehicle that will allow you to: Motivate your team members to make regular, measurable progress Answer any questions or be clear on where your team needs your assistance Invite your team to provide suggestions and give feedback on what is working and not working Without an effective reporting process in place, it is quite challenging to understand if your team is doing a good job and moving in the right direction. This then leads to many unnecessary conversations and emails so you can understand what is going on. This takes a lot of time and can be quite frustrating. You may feel out of control and uneasy instead of feeling in control and clear about what is going on in your business each day.
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A good reporting rhythm is essential. I recommend three key reports – daily, weekly and monthly – to provide clarity about what each person is doing and responsible for, along with the confidence that these tasks are
getting done when you need them to be done.
Daily reports The daily report is designed to give you an understanding of what your team member has
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achieved during that day. The report answers three questions: 1 What did you accomplish today? 2 Did you achieve everything that was
scheduled to be completed today? (If no, please list what wasn’t completed and why it wasn’t completed.) 3 Is there anything you need help with, or
do you have any questions? These questions are designed to keep your people focused on the specific tasks that have been assigned to them, and to also ensure that they are performing their assigned tasks in a timely fashion. They also allow for open dialogue on a daily basis to ensure that tasks and projects are moving forward and aren’t delayed because of you.
Weekly reports The weekly report is designed to be a summary of the week’s activities. Each person needs to report on the success or failure of achieving their key responsibilities and report to you their weekly KPIs. This report will also include answers to the following questions: 1 What was your brightest moment of
the week? 2 What was your biggest challenge of
the week? 3 What did you learn in the last week? 4 Based on the week gone by, I believe we
should stop doing … 5 Based on the week gone by, I believe we
should start doing … 6 I need your help with …
This report will form a good part of the agenda for the weekly meeting you have with your team. The report is designed to allow you to gauge how each person is feeling throughout their workweek, in addition to giving you valuable feedback and ideas on how to continue to grow and develop your business.
Monthly reports The monthly report is designed to be a mini 360-degree assessment of each employee’s performance. The team member will list each task that has been assigned to them, the frequency of the task and the importance of the task. They will then list the date they were trained in the task and who trained them. The person completing the report will then give themselves a score out of 10 on their ability to complete the task with 100% confidence and trust. This report will then be submitted to the team member’s direct manager (this might be you or somebody else) for them to assess. Once the assessment is complete, a meeting should occur to discuss the assessment score variances and how these will be rectified. This will often involve retraining or further system development.
Accountability Accountability often gets confused with someone taking the blame for something. This is not what we’re talking about here. Accountability is, in my opinion, about delivering on a commitment. It’s being answerable or responsible to someone for something. It is essential to your ability to stop doing the tasks on your list that can be delegated to someone else, who then becomes accountable for the task or activity. In order to achieve this, it is essential to implement the following five steps: 1 Set clear expectations. Your people can only be accountable if they understand what is expected of them. Hence, it is important to be clear about the outcome you desire, the timeframe in which you require this to be completed and whether you require them to follow a specific system to achieve the outcome or if they can choose their own adventure. 2 Arm them with the tools of success. Make sure your people are trained and have all the tools they require to achieve the
desired outcome; otherwise, you are setting them up to fail. 3 Create a simple scoreboard of performance. While you might discuss the specific outcome you desire, it is important to establish some milestone check-ins and progress reports to enable you and the person performing the task or project to clearly understand whether they are ‘winning.’ 4 Conduct constructive feedback sessions. Open, honest and constructive feedback is essential to ensure your people understand how they are performing. This is made easier by implementing the first three steps. This will require some tough conversations at times, but remember, the only way for your people to get better is for them to understand what they need to improve. 5 Establish clear rewards and consequences. Most accountability is ineffective because there are no clear rewards or consequences for following through on what you said you were going to do. If a person has succeeded, then they should be rewarded in some way. This could be as simple as acknowledging their achievement – or, if they prove themselves over time, it could lead to a promotion. If they have not followed through and delivered on their commitment and you feel confident you have set them up to succeed, then you might need to consider assigning the task or activity to someone else or perhaps even moving the person on. While this might seem simple to follow and execute, this five-step process is often neglected. Take the time to understand and implement this, and you will be amazed at how quickly you see a positive return.
Matt Malouf is a business strategist. This article is an edited excerpt from his book The Stop Doing List, which draws on his work in helping business owners free up time to build their businesses.
www.mortgagebrokernews.ca
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PEOPLE
CAREER PATH
FROM THE GROUND UP Outside her comfort zone is where Dalia Barsoum thrives
Originally from Egypt, Barsoum was living in the Gulf region during the first Gulf War. As a teenager, she found herself grappling with a lack of necessities such as water and electricity, as well as an ever-present uncertainty about the future
“It shaped my thinking growing up; for almost a year, I had to find ways to survive. There’s always a way. In tough times, you become stronger, not weaker”
1991
SURVIVES A WAR
2002
GETS AN MBA
Barsoum was one of 30 people selected by the bank for an executive development program, which included a four-year MBA from Dalhousie University “For me to advance at the bank, I felt I needed more education; in order to climb the ladder, I needed to understand the business. I brought some ideas to the table, and the executives saw that [ambition] in me and wanted to give me a shot”
2008
INVESTS IN REAL ESTATE
Barsoum returned from a year of maternity leave just in time for the global financial crisis. She used the experience as an opportunity to diversify her portfolio via real estate, starting with two rental properties “Everything seemed to be so fragile, so I looked around for other alternatives. Through research, I learned about real estate as an investment class. I read as many books as I could find, connected with people and decided to make the move”
2013
PUTS IT IN WRITING The publication of her book aimed at property investors – which went on to become a bestseller – was one of Barsoum’s proudest achievements, second only to the creation of Streetwise Mortgages “I feel a lot of satisfaction when I build something from the ground up – doing that is very fulfilling. The most important thing I’ve done is create a successful brand”
1998
COMES TO CANADA With a bachelor’s degree in computer science in hand, Barsoum and her two sisters immigrated to Canada in search of a better future. They found a country in the throes of the dot-com boom, and Barsoum landed a job in IT with one of Canada’s Big Five banks “I had heard of the diversity, equality and opportunity in Canada. The internet boom was an exciting time, being part of something new. I saw a future. What I studied was in demand”
2006
EXPLORES WEALTH MANAGEMENT Barsoum next took a role in the wealth management division of the bank, where she had a hand in managing more than $2 billion worth of assets “I have always believed in getting out of my comfort zone. I had no experience in wealth management. I learned how to see quickly what’s important in any setting, to connect with the right people – because it’s all about people. They’re wiser and more experienced; you can learn from them and move forward quickly”
2011
MOVES INTO MORTGAGES With a broker’s licence in hand and pregnant with her second child, Barsoum left the comfort of the bank to become a mortgage broker “I wanted to be in finance and real estate – I wanted something that connected those two things with flexibility, something that was in demand and would help me grow my wealth. I had no option but to succeed. I would multitask – I’d have a phone in one hand and the baby in the other”
62 www.mortgagebrokernews.ca
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PEOPLE
OTHER LIFE
TELL US ABOUT YOUR OTHER LIFE Email mortgagebrokernews@kmimedia.ca
D ick so n own s a r, e th re e h o rs e s: B ) d Sa d e e (p ictu re a n d Sca rlet
5
Number of minutes in a typical working cow horse routine
BACK ON THE HORSE Outside of the office, Deborah Dickson is most at home in the saddle
DEBORAH DICKSON grew up riding horses – she estimates she was first placed in the saddle at the age of 2 – but it wasn’t until the Langley, BC-based mortgage broker attended the Calgary Stampede in 2000 that she found her passion for cutting and working cow horse competitions, in which the horse and rider demonstrate their proficiency in herding cattle. “I wanted to do something different with the horses,” she says, “and when I saw [the cowboy-themed equestrian competitions], I thought, ‘That’s what I want to do!’” Three years later, Dickson returned to
1–2
Horse shows Dickson attends every month during the summer
2,200km Longest distance Dickson has ever travelled to compete
the event as a competitor and left with a fifth-place finish in the non-pro cutting event. “It was awesome: The arena was packed, everyone was cheering; it was amazing,” she says. By 2015, she had won first place at the world championship in Fort Worth in the non-pro bridle working cow horse event. But even outside competition, riding is a daily activity for Dickson. “It’s amazing stress relief,” she says. “While you’re riding, you don’t look at your cell phone or email; you’re in the moment. It’s a mini-vacation every day.”
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