Fed up with telemarketing calls!

Fed up with telemarketing calls so I finally did it…….. I picked up the phone and called the CRTC to make a complaint about an unsolicited telemarketing fax I received last night on my fax machine. A telecom company decided to fax me one of their marketing ads which annoyed me.

A few years ago, the CRTC (Canadian Radio Television and Telecommunications Commission) set up the “National Do-not-call Registry” in Canada which is an online tool where individuals can register their telephone numbers on this registry. This tool became available after Canadian Government passed Bill C-37 and it became law empowering CRTC to issue fines on those who violated the do-not-call rules. I remember when I first heard about this tool, I pounced on the opportunity immediately to register my numbers.

Once listed on the registry, a telemarketer should not contact you to solicit your business or money. Now there are some exceptions on those who can call you and these are charities, newspapers, political parties seeking your support, or a business where you already have had recent consumer transactions. Once you register your telephone number, it takes 31-days, after you register your telephone number, and after the 31-day period, telemarketing companies, other than those listed above, cannot call your number and if they do, they can face fines if you register a valid complaint. Note that the registration of your telephone number is only valid for three years, so after three years, you should call the National do not call registry to re-register your phone number.

To register your number on the registry in Canada, go to this website:

https://www.lnnte-dncl.gc.ca/index-eng

So the process was easy. I called 1-866-580-3625 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              1-866-580-3625      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 1-866-580-3625 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              1-866-580-3625      end_of_the_skype_highlighting end_of_the_skype_highlighting and spoke to a very helpful lady, who asked me a few questions:

1) what number did the telemarketer call me at?

2) what is the name of the business, and the phone number of the business that called me?

3) what was the date that the telemarketer contacted me?

And, to top it all off….I received a faxed document – perfect printed “evidence” !!!

She then gave me a unique ID code number, which I was to write across the fax transmission I received, and then she asked me to fax that document I received to this number: 1-888-362-5329 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              1-888-362-5329      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 1-888-362-5329 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              1-888-362-5329      end_of_the_skype_highlighting end_of_the_skype_highlighting. She then advised me that any future calls or faxes I received from telemarketers, must be called in and registered separately as they assign a unique ID code to each call or fax……….. Easy!

We have family, in the United States, and we were told that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Do Not Call Registry, has hefty penalties for telemarketers who do not comply. I found a good example of that — AT&T was fined $780,000 for failing to comply with the Do Not Call Registry. Wow, $780,000!!!……don’t mess with the US or at least don’t mess with the US FCC!! Here is a link to the article – I’m not sure if the fine was ever collected, but I hope it was.

http://www.allbusiness.com/legal/consumer-law-telemarketing-regulation-do-not/10221784-1.html

Somehow the CRTC in Canada is just a little weak in the area of imposing penalties to telemarketers who call those who have registered their numbers with the do-not-call list. Canadian companies, who still wish to bother us with their telemarketing calls, have found ways to get around the rules by outsourcing their telemarketing calls to overseas companies…..now that I have followed through on the complaint process, I will be sure to ask some questions to find out who the Canadian company is and what their local number is, so that I can follow through with a formal complaint.

The CRTC in Canada has, what I would consider, “wimpy” penalties especially since consumers need assurance that offending companies really do get the message and avoid calling those who do not wish to be called.   For example, in Canada, if found guilty, an individual can be fined $1,500 whereas a corporation can be fined up to $15,000 for each violation.   It seems the number of fines issued is also very minimal relative to the actual number of reported telemarketers in violation – see this link:

http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/dncl/status-etape.htm

Sorry fellow sales friends, but I’m going to have to tell you that its not the way we should be getting business anymore.  Too many people are just simply fed up with telemarketing calls.

© 2010 This blog was written by Elizabeth Blair at Mortgage Edge on March 23, 2010. Elizabeth Blair services mortgage clients primarily in Mississauga and all over the Greater Toronto area You can contact Elizabeth directly by phone at (905) 510-5785 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              (905) 510-5785      end_of_the_skype_highlighting begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (905) 510-5785 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              (905) 510-5785      end_of_the_skype_highlighting end_of_the_skype_highlighting by email at eblair@mortgageedge.ca or you visit her website at:

http://www.missmortgage.ca

Elizabeth is licensed with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario and is also a Member of IMBA (the Independent Mortgage Brokers Association of Ontario) http://www.imba.ca Lic # M08005880 / Brokerage Lic # 10680. Head Office: Park Place Corporate Centre, 15 Wertheim Court, Suite 210, Richmond Hill, ON, L4B 3H7, Canada.

Fixed Mortgage Rates moving up

The bond is up by more than 22 points in the last few days.  We have already seen some movement at the bank level, and expect to see movement early next week if the bond stays where it is at – see links below.

Are you pressed for time and with fixed rates rising, please call me today to find out about locking in a rate for 120 days.     It only takes 2 minutes (time is guaranteed) to request a Rate Hold*.

* ”Rate Hold”:    this is not a mortgage pre-approval application.   On applicant’s request to proceed, with the rate hold offer, all applicants are required to complete a mortgage application.  The lender reserves the right to either accept or decline, any applicant, based on their review of the applicant(s) submitted mortgage application(s).  This review involves the verification of personal credit report history and verification of income.

See link:  http://www.stockwatch.com/newsit/newsit_newsit.aspx?bid=Z-C:RY-1650239&symbol=RY&news_region=C

See link:  http://www.tmxmoney.com/HttpController?GetPage=BondsAndRates&Language=en

This blog post was written by Elizabeth Blair on October 12, 2009.  Elizabeth Blair is a Licensed Mortgage Agent with Mortgage Edge in Richmond Hill, Ontario.  Elizabeth services mortgage clients in Mississauga and all over the Greater Toronto area.   You can contact Elizabeth directly by phone at (905) 510-5785

by email at eblair@mortgageedge.ca

or you visit her website at:    http://www.missmortgage.ca

Elizabeth is licensed with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario and is also a Member of IMBA (the Independent Mortgage Brokers Association of Ontario) http://www.imba.ca

Lic # M08005880 / Brokerage Lic # 10680

Head office is located at:  15 Wertheim Court, Suite 210, Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada.

NEW Lower Mortgage Rates!

Here are hot new mortgage rates for you:

1.     Variable Rate Mortgage at Prime Rate – 2.25% **

2.     5 Year Fixed Rate – 3.75% **

If your mortgage loan amount is greater than $370,000, I can get you

3.59% ** on a 5 Year Fixed Rate.

**  Some conditions apply and subject to approval by the Lender.  Mortgage rates are subject to change without notice.

This post was written by Elizabeth Blair, a Licensed Mortgage Agent with Mortgage Edge in Richmond Hill, Ontario.

Elizabeth services mortgage clients in Mississauga and all over the Greater Toronto area.

You can contact Elizabeth directly by phone at (905) 510-5785

by email at eblair@mortgageedge.ca

or you visit her website at: http://www.missmortgage.ca

Elizabeth is licensed with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario and is also a Member of IMBA (the Independent Mortgage Brokers Association of Ontario) http://www.imba.ca Lic # M08005880 Brokerage Lic # 10680 Head office is located at: 15 Wertheim Court, Suite 210, Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada.

The lost art of referring business

Many good things, unless they are continually practiced and exercised, can truly be “lost”.   I believe that there is an art in the practice of referring business and that too will go by the wayside unless business owners learn to do this well.

Each year, as I work in this business, I continue to build up a database that now holds over 750 people, prospects, clients, lawyers, appraisers, lenders, realtors.  As I continue to see increasing growth in sales, I also see a rising trend in referrals that I receive from others.   This steady stream of referral business has become the main reason why I have enjoyed the growth in sales today.

Over the years, I have also been focused on gathering an established network of individuals who I “believe in”.  Each time I come across someone who might need that kind of service provider, I work very hard to ensure that the individual knows and understands that the person I am referring is excellent at what they do.  In a way, it is a mini sales job, on its own, and most times, the individual I refer ends up getting the business.  Here is an example of some of the things I have done in the past, on behalf of that individual I am referring:  tell them about a recent great job they did for me or a client of mine, let them know that I know them well and I believe wholeheartedly in their service level and I may even send them the business card of the person I am referring.   I can honestly say that I receive great satisfaction in referring others and I believe that if I expect others to refer business to me, then I must be working hard at securing business for them.

I believe that referring others must become something we do everyday IF we expect to reap the reward of constant referred business coming back our way.   It is the basic rule of giving if you expect to receive.   What a straightforward idea but yet so difficult for many to grasp…. truly a lost art.     While there are structured programs and groups out there, like networking groups, that motivate members to refer business, these groups do come with hefty membership fees and often because of the fees, members feel obligated to push leads into the group just to get their fair share of leads back….it is a pay to receive structure.   I believe true networking for referral business should not be something you “pay for”, it should be something you do naturally along with the group of business partners that you have come to know and trust….…sending business leads out and expecting business leads back.

This year has been an absolutely amazing year for me and as I continue to receive leads and pass out a high number of excellent real estate leads to realtors, I will continue to carefully monitor who is sending leads and will ensure those are the ones I refer business back to.

This article was written by Elizabeth Blair, a Licensed Mortgage Agent with Mortgage Edge in Richmond Hill, Ontario.

Elizabeth services mortgage clients in Mississauga and all over the Greater Toronto area.

You can contact Elizabeth directly by phone at (905) 510-5785

by email at eblair@mortgageedge.ca

or you visit her website at: http://www.missmortgage.ca

Elizabeth is licensed with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario and is also a Member of IMBA (the Independent Mortgage Brokers Association of Ontario) http://www.imba.ca Lic # M08005880 Brokerage Lic # 10680 Head office is located at: 15 Wertheim Court, Suite 210, Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada.

Mortgage rates on the rise

Recent bond increases is putting extreme pressure on lenders to raise fixed rates.   If you are shopping for a home, or renewing  a mortgage in the next 120-days and you take fixed rate products, now is a good time to negotiate the mortgage rate.

This blog was written by Elizabeth Blair, a licensed Mortgage Agent with Mortgage Edge in Richmond Hill, Ontario.

Elizabeth services mortgage clients in Mississauga and all over the Greater Toronto area.

You can contact Elizabeth directly by phone at (905) 510-5785

by email at eblair@mortgageedge.ca

or you visit her website at:    http://www.missmortgage.ca

Elizabeth is licensed with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario and is also a Member of IMBA (the Independent Mortgage Brokers Association of Ontario) http://www.imba.ca

Lic # M08005880  /   Brokerage Lic # 10680

What is a mortgage discharge fee?

I received an email from someone who found my website on the internet, asking me why they were charged a discharge fee, by their bank, when they paid off the full balance of their mortgage. This was a fee that they were surprised to see and they were checking with me to see if that was a valid charge that they had to pay.

I explained to this person that this was most definitely a valid fee and that they should go back to their original mortgage contract/mortgage commitment to read the fine print, listed somewhere in their document. If you refer to the fine-print of your mortgage agreement/commitment, you will see it there listed under a “fees” section and it will list all standard fees borrowers will pay in certain situations, for example, service fees, assignment/transfer fee, processing fee, default charges/missed payment fee, as well as the discharge fee, as well as other possible fees related to the mortgage.

Here are a few situations where you would be required to pay a discharge fee:

1) if you pay off your entire mortgage balance;

2) if you switch from your current bank, to another bank, and register a new mortgage with the new bank.

3) if you sell your home and switch from your current bank to another bank.

The discharge fee is worked out, by your bank, on a simple one page form and it really does seem to be a very excessive fee to pay, for a simple form that may have taken your bank a short time to prepare. Interestingly, the mortgage discharge fee varies from province to province and from lender to lender. Did you know, for example, that in the province of British Columbia, The Financial Institutions Commission (FICOM) which regulates the financial services industry, has stated that a mortgage discharge fee must not exceed $75. You can read about their position at this following link:

http://www.fic.gov.bc.ca/pdf/mortgagebrokers/mb-07-003.pdf

Unfortunately, the Financial Services Commission of Ontario (FSCO) has not created a similar cap on the bank’s mortgage discharge fee in Ontario. While every bank must disclose the discharge fee, in the mortgage contract provided to you, you can also go on-line to see what current published discharge fees are, at any time. Remember, however, that the discharge fee that you see in the mortgage contract you signed, is the fee that you will be charged once there is a need to have a mortgage discharge statement prepared. Bank’s published discharge fees can be viewed at this following link:

http://www.fiscalagents.com/thestar/mtg_disx_sort.shtml

This blog was written by Elizabeth Blair, a Licensed Mortgage Agent with Mortgage Edge in Richmond Hill, Ontario. Elizabeth services mortgage clients in Mississauga and all over the Greater Toronto area.

You can contact Elizabeth directly by phone at (905) 510-5785

by email at eblair@mortgageedge.ca

or you visit her website at: http://www.missmortgage.ca

Elizabeth is licensed with the Financial Services Commission of Ontario and is also a Member of IMBA (the Independent Mortgage Brokers Association of Ontario) http://www.imba.ca

Lic # M08005880

Brokerage Lic # 10680

Head office is located at: 15 Wertheim Court, Suite 210, Richmond Hill, Ontario, Canada.