I own a condo in Kimberley BC which has seen a dramatic appreciation in less than 3 yrs. I purchased in April 2005 for 105 K invested about 8K in reno and paint/design which includes a new roof on the entire 30 unit bldg. It recently appraised for 230K which I consider conservative since I have one of the more desireable units - top floor corner and an upgraded design and paint and others are listing for higher than that in this bldg. My problem is I am on a variable rate with firstline and as rates have been edging up I am at break even point now. The current mtg balance is 99K, the rent is $875/mo, mtg pmts are $607/mo, condo fees $130/mo and prop. tx at 1650/yr. I tried to refinance with my bank - TD with a 40 yr amort and a line of credit, they would pay all the costs except the interest penalty to get out of firstline, this they would bundle with the mtg, end of the day they wouldn`t touch it as it is an adult community - no children, no pets, basically a retirement residence. Firstline will not give me a line of credit for any more than a 25 yr amort which would effectively increase my payments to approx 640/mo. THey will give me up to a 35 yr amort, only if I increase the mortgage by 10K and I would incur legal costs - about $500 and reregistering mtg at $100. This would decrease my payments by about $20 to approx. $585/mo. I would also have the extra 10k less my costs, which I could put toward my current residence reno thereby decreasing my `non tax deductible` costs. The current tenants are on a lease from Nov. 06 to Nov. 08 after which I plan to increase the rent to 900/mo.
I will be getting some payment relief but still be sitting on a large equity that is not at my disposal.
Any comments or advice on this dilemna would be appreciated.
Don Campbell may recall exchanging emails several yrs ago and expressing some doubt as to the airport expansion in Cranbrook actually going ahead, well it did and as my RE agent pointed out at the time the building was undervalued due to a leaky roof, well we fixed that and everything else surged and we are enjoying tremendous appreciation in the area. This agent also recomended several renovations which I did and that also helped tremendously in the appeal of my unit. His name is James Swansburg and his company is called Specialist Real Estate. He has a good eye for value and is not afraid to speak his mind.
I will be getting some payment relief but still be sitting on a large equity that is not at my disposal.
Any comments or advice on this dilemna would be appreciated.
Don Campbell may recall exchanging emails several yrs ago and expressing some doubt as to the airport expansion in Cranbrook actually going ahead, well it did and as my RE agent pointed out at the time the building was undervalued due to a leaky roof, well we fixed that and everything else surged and we are enjoying tremendous appreciation in the area. This agent also recomended several renovations which I did and that also helped tremendously in the appeal of my unit. His name is James Swansburg and his company is called Specialist Real Estate. He has a good eye for value and is not afraid to speak his mind.