Property taxes, which pay for most municipal services, are the product of your home’s assessed value multiplied by the local tax rate. You can’t change the tax rate, but you can argue that you have been over-assessed. Begin by checking your home’s assessment report. This is typically a computerized estimate of your home’s selling price, based on sales information from a particular assessment date. Is it fair? If a similar house on your block sold for much less than your valuation around the time of the assessment date, you may have evidence of over-assessment.

Assessments are carried out by provincial agencies or municipalities. If you’ve spotted a factual error on your assessment—it claims you have a two-car garage when you don’t—you can often get this fixed by simply calling the assessor. If there are no clear-cut mistakes, but you still think you’ve been over-assessed, you will need to officially appeal your assessment.

The more unique your house, the harder it is to value—and the better your chances of winning an appeal. “If you live in a cookie-cutter neighbourhood, assessments are usually pretty accurate,” says William Howse, a Toronto tax lawyer. “But as soon as you get anything unusual in features or lots, or get into pricier neighbourhoods, then the computer can have big problems.” An older or smaller house in an expensive area or proximity to a busy road, railway or school can provide a strong case for appeal.

.Reference resource: Click Here.

If you have less than stellar credit, you may be a candidate for a sub-prime mortgage loan. So, what exactly are they, how do they work and should you apply for one?

Traditionally, the loan industry was fairly static. To get a loan, you needed a history of employment, adequate income and good credit. As the loan industry has matured, it has started developing programs for people that did not fit this profile. For those with credit problems, programs known as sub-prime mortgage loans slowly evolved. Here in Canada, sub-prime mortgage lenders are often referred to as alternate lenders, B lenders, non-conforming lenders or simply just private lenders.
Your credit score is determined by applying a calculation to your credit report. A score above 700 is considered good credit. One below 600 is considered bad credit.

Borrowers with a credit score that falls below 620 are candidates for sub-prime loan loans. Sub-prime mortgage loans work more or less the same way as a traditional loan. The primary difference has to do with risk. Because you have poor credit, the lender considers you to be a risky bet when it comes to paying back the loan. This manifests in the loan in a couple of ways.
First, you can expect to pay a higher interest rate on the loan. The rate can be anywhere from one to four points higher depending on your specific situation. The reason a lender charges you more is it expects more profit for taking a chance on you. If you work out of your home, or have a home office, you may be able to write a portion of the interest off of your income taxes – be sure to consult with your accountant.

You can also expect to pay a lender fee on the front of the loan. By charging you a fee up front, the lender is again trying to limit its risk. In practical terms, it is trying to get as much money up front as possible.

.Reference resource: Click Here.