Bankers down here are very nervous. And given the recession, rightly so. First question:
- are you American? No.
- do you have a social insurance number? Yes, but it's a Canadian SIN.
- what type of house are you buying? We're interested in a condo.
Well, that won't do! Doesn't matter what your assets, what your credit history, what your down payment, we don't want to touch you.
Many investors (speculators) have dropped their investments and left the banks hanging. Banks are particulately not interested in mortgaging condos (which is what we're trying to buy) because condos are in a bad position given the incidence of foreclosures and a lack of condo owners paying monthly condo fees. The whole structure is in a downward spiral.
So, right now attitude is key. Are we positive, forward-looking people or pessimists? Well, I'd like to think we're the former so damn the torpedos, full speed ahead.
On the plus side, we're not investors per se. We're not looking to make money, only to have a second home, a home-away-from-home, one we plan on living in for repeating six months stints over the next umpteen years, God willing.
We'll keep you posted on our progress. In the meantime, other condo offerings just keep coming our way. Just this minute, a friend called to say her next-door neighbour is selling her upper floor unit. Would we like to look?
Decisions, decisions.
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