QUOTE (housedoc @ Feb 26 2010, 06:58 AM) Huh? You get to claim 30% of all your house related expenses. 100% of rental expenses (advertising, painting the unit, damage repair to the unit etc.) I pay the power bill for the unit because it has a seperate power meter from my main house...

Thanks for the responses everyone!

QUOTE (Nukav @ Feb 25 2010, 07:36 PM) It is easier to get tenants if you have them installed. Who wants to have to take clothes to the laundrymat? This is about keeping happy renters afterall, if you can get away without it, great...but you can usually pick up a decent used pair for 2-3 hundred...

QUOTE (aiden1983 @ Feb 25 2010, 12:35 PM) I was wondering when you rent out the basement suite in your primary residence how do you calculate how much money you should be paying taxes on? Can you use 1/2 your mortgage payment as a write off? I want to become a LL so I am sorry if my question...

Just curious, do many of you provide washer and dryer in any of your properties? Not coin operated, just the regular ones. I provide it in one of my properties. I am buying a duplex and wondering if I should provide them or not....hmmmm.

If your tenant causes a fire that burns down your property (or causes other less major damage), who`s insurance covers it? I thought it was not possible to have my policy cover it. I thought this is something that we require of tenants. This is what I was told by my insurance company, but...

QUOTE (Tootse @ Feb 21 2010, 05:50 PM) It is a Duplex. Upon requesting my broker to double check, thanks to the information provided by Rob and others in this discussion, I found out I can get in with 5% down. Thanks Everyone! Tootse

QUOTE (RobMacdonald @ Feb 21 2010, 02:10 AM) By the way, is the property you are looking at a triplex or a 4 plex. That`s another reason why 5% down may not be available. The minimum down payment is 10% for 3 to 4 units. It is a Duplex.

QUOTE (RobMacdonald @ Feb 20 2010, 02:49 PM) No, that`s not true. You can still put down 5% until the rules change in April. Has your application been submitted to CMHC? It can happen that CMHC won`t offer 5% because of other circumstances and request 10% down. But, if you can qualify 5%...

QUOTE (invst4profit @ Feb 20 2010, 03:16 PM) Report change to the bank and insurance company. Thanks for the Reply.

I am potentially moving out of my current home which has a legal basement suite. If I move out, am I supposed to report this to the bank? Also, will my insurance premium be increased on my mortgage? I know this is a question for the lender, which I will ask, but I wanted to get some of your...

I`m being told by my mortgage broker that I need a minimum of 10% down for non-owner occupied. 5% down is no longer an option for non-owner occupied. Is this true?

I think boiling vinegar on the stove is also a home remedy...I think...

Same situation here. For my situation, I decided to save for the downpayment first, while making minimal debt payments. I wanted to have the downpayment money set aside for a few months prior to seeking mortgage approval. I found this gave me better peace of mind. And now I am making big...

QUOTE (ctang @ Jan 18 2010, 04:21 PM) Seems like I don`t have a lot of options... Could I use a silent partner (i.e., mom or dad) to put down the down payment from their bank account, then I will pay them after I close? I would guess that using a silent partner would still prompt CMHC to ask...

QUOTE (jcabral @ Jan 11 2010, 08:30 PM) If you went to any post secondary college, the alumni usually has an affinity program. I use Mecloche/Mennox - A TD bank insurance. This offered the best rates for me. I also looked at ScotiaBank Auto insurance, very competitive with TD. Same here.

I just obtained my own reports from each company while building my sophisticated investors binder. I found the Equifax report easiest to read and was more up to date with less errors.

Thanks everyone. I am leaning more towards the 35 yrs now. After 5 yrs I can look at my options.

Hi everyone. I am close to finalizing a deal on a duplex that will cash flow either $220, $340 or $430 depending on whether or not I amortize 25, 30 or 35 years, respectively. I can`t decide what amortization I want. What factors influence this decision? Are there some hard and fast rules...

Thanks for the advice everyone. Specific question: Is it a good idea, or even possible, to have multiple bank accounts such as ones for emergency savings, vacation savings, seperate chequing accounts for each income property, personal chequing, savings account for downpayment fund, accounts...