My husband and I got the keys to our first home on the 27th
of May 2005. It was a huge milestone for us as I was also expecting our second
child. We got a 3 bedroom town house in the heart of Toronto Ontario. I
remember quiet well that we had to save for 4 good years to buy this home. My
husband worked nights and went to school during the day while I worked at a
major bank. As new immigrants and a young family we were focused on achieving
our financial goals by saving monthly and never lived beyond our means. But our
lack of knowledge in financial planning/literacy led to lots of mistakes along
the way. These mistakes were very costly
as we both ended up with credit challenges that took 5 years to
rectify.
I shared our story:
1.
To create awareness in the new immigrant communities about the importance of financial literacy and planning
2.
To inspire and encourage you that most realistic financial goals and
dreams are achievable if you put in enough effort and plan accordingly
3.
To encourage you to seek help if you find yourself in a challenged credit situation.
My Advice:
1.
If you’re currently renting due to a challenged credit situation, speak to someone that can help you such as an account manager in the bank or a finance coach.
2.
If you want to buy a home and you don't have a down
payment, seek professional advice.
3
We waited four years to buy our first home but you no longer
have to wait for years because there are lots of first time home buyer programs
that can help you. It took us five years to resolve our credit challenges but
you now have lots or tools and resources that can help you get out of debt faster.
The moment you start using your credit facilities to supplement
your income, it means “there is fire on the mountain and you have to run”.
This will be a good time to reach out to an expert.
Alicia Keys and Adele both have Ron Anderson as their voice
coach and Lebron James who is a top athlete has a personal shooting coach. Invest in your future by hiring an expert to help you with your financial goals
or talk to your financial advisor at the bank. But keep in mind that a financial advisor
works for the bank while a finance coach works for you!
I am a mortgage planner and a Finance coach. I work with my
clients on all aspect of personal finance such as building new credit or fixing
challenged credit, savings for a specific goal, financial literacy and matching mortgage solutions to a specific life
stage.
Email: info@margmortgages with all your personal finance and
mortgage questions. You can also check out my website www.margmortgages.ca to learn more about
mortgages solutions.
(Marg Mortgages is licensed by The Mortgage Group)
