All Forum Posts by: Alex Cons

Each mortgage insurer has their own requirements. The first property I bought with 5% down was with CMHC as mortgage insurer. The second one I bought was through Genworth with 5% downpayment and I still own my first one as well (less than 2 years apart). If you use CMCH to buy a second home with only 5% down they they require the first property to have at least 20% equity (you would order an appraisal to verify this is the case). BUT Genworth does not. Under Genworth rules, as long as you qualify on paper and can afford a second property then all you need is 5% downpayment on the second property with no appraisal needed on your first home. My mortgage broker told me this and I was shocked. I closed on my second property last month with no appraisal needed on my first home.

I recently shopped around for a new house insurance company because I was quoted $1400 a year for a SFD with a basement suite with a rebuild value at $340,000. I settled with TD home insurance because they quoted me $800 a year with the same deductible as my previous insurance company. Why is it so low? Does anybody have any advice or experience with claims going through TD? Im wondering if the $600 savings a year might cost me down the road... If there are any other recommendations for home insurance companies that are Canada wide then that would be greatly appreciated as well!

@Stanley Kong

Hi all, I'm new to BP and I'm excited to see a thread here on Prince George!

I am a real estate appraiser in Prince George and I currently have my first two investments here as well. As mentioned earlier, Nation Crescent offers great cashflow but the neighborhood would be considered a C or a B- neighborhood. The VLA is a D or C- area depending on which streets you are on. @Aaron Saarela hit the nail on the head with his description of each of those neighborhoods and streets. There are some investors who specialize in those neighborhoods because of the cashlow margins, but be prepared with a much larger repair and maintenance reserve fund. If you are considering these areas, I know a property manager who specializes in the rougher neighborhoods in town and she has a few properties in the VLA as well. Its good to have property manager who knows the demographic and who has a bit of skin in the game.