Five Tips For Smart Back to School Shopping

Start your back-to-school shopping with a game plan. Even if your child’s
teacher hasn’t provided a list of school supplies, you can’t go wrong by
sticking with the basics and taking advantage of back-to-school sales. Here’s
how:

Make a list and get your child involved.

Use the recommended or required supplies from your child’s school or
teacher as a starting point. If you don’t have a list yet, check with parents at
your school who have older kids. They might have good advice about what is
required in your child’s grade. Sit down with your child and go over your list
together. You’ll be teaching your child how to get organized, a skill that
applies to more than shopping.

Separate wants from needs.

Most school supplies don’t go out of style, and your child will happily use the
unsharpened pencils his older sister didn’t use. But as any parent with last
year’s superhero notebook knows, beware the power of trends. Rather than
getting into an argument with your older child about whether a backpack
with headphones is essential because “everybody is getting one,” try setting
a budget for supplies. It will help your child set priorities, learn how to
manage money, and start saving his allowance for the items your budget
won’t allow.

Take inventory.

Sort through last year’s supplies to see what is left over or can be reused.
(Having trouble finding last year’s stuff? Resolve to set up a place to keep
your school supplies together this year.)

Start early and look for bargains throughout the summer.

The best bargains are often available at back-to-school sales. Keeping your
supply list in your car or purse or on your PDA will help you shop for supplies
as you do your other errands.

Buy basics in bulk.

You know you’ll need paper, pencils, glue stick and notebooks. Dollar stores,
warehouse stores and even eBay sources for buying these and other basics
in bulk. You and a group of other parents might be able to negotiate a group
discount from an office supply store.
Then set up a supply shelf or storage container in your home that you can
use all year long. You’ll be able to avoid late-night shopping trips to buy
notebook paper when you run out. And you’ll know where to find unused
notebooks and pencils when it comes time to shop for back-to-school
supplies next year

http://www.okanaganmortgages.com/

Five Tips For Smart Back to School Shopping

"North America's Story is Again Darkening", Says CIBC

TORONTO, Aug. 18 /CNW/ - Continuing weakness in the U.S. economy may force the Bank of Canada to put interest rate hikes on hold after September, notes a new report from CIBC World Markets Inc.

"North America's story is again darkening," says CIBC's Chief economist in the latest Global Positioning Strategy report. "We were looking for a material second-half slowdown for the U.S. but as it turns out, it's already happened."

Economic growth stateside from April to June is being revised downward, Mr. Shenfeld notes, and key indicators are pointing to growth that will be slower than anticipated by U.S. monetary policy makers.

And still ahead is a "further fiscal belt tightening in 2011 that will have to be softened, and accompanied by quantitative easing, if the U.S. is to stay out of recession in early 2011 and get back to potential growth by the end of that year.

"Forget about any rates hikes from the U.S. Federal Reserve until sometime in 2012 at the earliest."

While Canada is in much better economic shape - it leads the U.S., Eurozone, U.K. and Japan in first-half growth and has a record gap over the U.S. in the share of working age population holding a job - it "cannot move all the way to normalized interest rates while the U.S. Federal Reserve is still on hold," Mr. Shenfeld contends.

For starters, an interest rate differential of 300-400 basis points would take the loonie "substantially stronger" creating additional headwinds for Canadian economic growth, says Mr. Shenfeld.

Furthermore, the "external environment will be one of less-than-normal growth as fiscal tightening bites in Europe and the U.S., and with our own upcoming fiscal tightening also hitting domestic demand, monetary policy might have to be set at stimulative levels to allow the economy to return to potential and remain there. To keep moving at all, you have to step on the gas if your car is trying to roll up a steep incline."

Mr. Shenfeld doubts that the Bank of Canada "has been shocked enough to forestall a rate hike in September" but his forecast that Canadian growth in Q2 and Q3 will fall below the BoC's outlook will likely warrant a rethinking in the October Monetary Policy Report and in the months to follow.

The report also notes that there are limits to how far the Bank of Canada can diverge from the U.S. Federal Reserve without later regretting it. Episodes in recent years in which rate overnight rates were 2 per cent or more above those stateside resulted in sagging or sacrificed growth. These are "lessons learned, we hope," says Mr. Shenfeld.

"Since a hike at every rate setting date through 2011 would take rates substantially higher than 2%, a pause is coming on the road to tightening."

As a result of the dampened external growth outlook, Mr. Shenfeld has trimmed his call for rate hikes. He sees Canadian overnight rates going no higher than 2% next year as the U.S. Federal Reserve stays on hold.

A less hawkish monetary policy combined with a mixed outlook for commodity prices affected by slow global growth will also likely see the Canadian dollar roughly two cents weaker than earlier forecast over the same horizon, adds Mr. Shenfeld.

The complete CIBC World Markets report is available at: http://research.cibcwm.com/economic_public/download/gps_aug10.pdf



CIBC World Markets Inc. is the corporate and investment banking arm of CIBC. To deliver on our mandate as a premier client-focused and Canadian-based wholesale bank, we provide a wide range of credit, capital markets, investment banking, merchant banking and research products and services to government, institutional, corporate and retail clients in Canada and in key markets around the world.

http://www.okanaganmortgages.com/

"North America's Story is Again Darkening", Says CIBC

Mortgage Payment Difficulties

When unforeseen financial circumstances impact your ability to make regular
mortgage payments, it's important for you to take quick action. With early
intervention, cooperation, and a well executed plan, you can work together
with your mortgage professional to find a solution to your financial
difficulties.

What Can I Do to Help?

If you find yourself facing financial difficulties, as a result of job
loss, family income reductions, or for other reasons, it can be an overwhelming experience leaving you feeling uncomfortable and unsure of what to do. By following these three simple steps, you can make a big difference in resolving your financial difficulties.

1. Talk to your mortgage professional

To increase the chance of successfully managing your financial situation
through early intervention, call your mortgage professional at the first
sign of financial difficulty ask the mortgage professional about information on the options available for managing your financial situation and keep the mortgage professional informed as circumstances evolve.

2. Clarify the financial picture

To help your mortgage professional fully understand your financial
situation, before meeting with them, prepare a detailed list of financial obligations including any credit cards, loans, household bills with the amounts owing and their due dates. Be sure to include information about your current income, savings accounts, investments, and any other assets.

3. Stay informed

The more information you have at your disposal on managing your finances,
the easier it will be to make the right decisions. Take Charge of Your Debts is an online tool from the Government of Canada that is designed to help borrowers like you understand debt problems, and includes information on making a budget, budget counselling, credit repair, etc. Log onto (www.igc.ca) (Industry Canada) and search for "Take Charge of Your Debts".

How Can Mortgage Professionals Help?

Your mortgage professional wants to establish and maintain a positive
relationship with you over long term, and is fully trained and equipped with
the tools to help you deal with the temporary financial setbacks you may be
facing.

http://www.okanaganmortgages.com

Mortgage Payment Difficulties

Take Time to Enjoy the Summer

A Mayonnaise Jar and Two Beers…

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 beers.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things---your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.

The sand is everything else---the small stuff. 'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

'Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

Take Time to Enjoy the Summer

Variable Rate May No Longer Win

Garry Marr, Financial Post · Tuesday, Jul. 27, 2010

Not that there are a lot of people buying houses these days, but the answer to the age-old question of whether to go long or short on your mortgage is unclear yet again.

The Bank of Canada’s second quarter-of-a-point rate increase in the past two months is likely not going to do much to boost a real estate market that saw sales drop almost 20% across the country in June from a year ago.

The popular variable-rate product tied to prime that helped people buy a lot more house with more debt is going up too. The prime rate at the major banks, which tracks the Bank of Canada’s rate, is now at 2.75%.

But a funny thing happened as the Bank of Canada was raising rates. With much of the credit crisis seemingly behind us, the discounts on short-term borrowing are increasing as the cost of funds for banks also fall. Instead of borrowing at 100 basis points above prime, it’s now 70 basis points off prime.

At 2.05%, a variable-rate product today may look as attractive as ever, but the five-year fixed-rate closed mortgage is falling fast. It can now be had for a shade under 4%, says Rob McLister, editor of Canadian Mortgage Trends.

“Bond yields have fallen out of bed and nobody expected that,” said Mr. McLister, adding the spread between the five-year Government of Canada bonds and five-year mortgages is still large enough that the banks may reduce long-term rates even more. However, at about 4%, the five-year closed fixed-rate mortgage isn’t far off its record low.

Bank of Montreal senior economist Sal Guatieri does agree that variable-rate products have worked out better than fixed-rate mortgages throughout history, but says the tide may be turning.

“Given that the central bank has already raised rates a couple of times now and will likely continue to raise rates, it probably is a correct assumption to make,” says Mr. Guatieri, noting variable usually works in a declining interest-rate environment. “The next five years might not quite follow the past. You could probably argue it’s wiser to lock in now. It’s a close call.”

Bank of Montreal is forecasting another 25 basis point move in September and says rates will climb another 1.5 percentage points by the end of 2011. If Mr. Guatieri and others are right, by 2012, the variable-rate products out today would clock in at just above 3.75%, if the discounting remains the same.

“If you are still in that variable-rate product then, you’d have to sweat out the next three years because there would still be possibly more increases,” says Mr. Guatieri, who adds his bank sees the overnight rate eventually going to 4% in the following three years. Based on the present gap between the Bank of Canada and prime, that would place the variable-rate product you get today at 6% by around 2015.

Fears of such a scenario are driving people into fixed-rate products again. That, plus new mortgage rules that make it easier to qualify for a mortgage if you go for a fixed-rate product with a term of five years or longer.

“The Bank of Canada is doing what it said — it’s going ahead with rate increases. If I was counselling someone, the prediction is rates are going up, so now is a good time to consider locking in for a term,” says Don Lawby, president of Century 21 Canada.

It makes sense, but with variable rate still at around 2%, it’s easy to see why people wouldn’t want to lock in. Even Mr. Guatieri says if you are secure in your financial situation and don’t need to fix your mortgage payments, “you might just want to let it ride.”

There just never seems to be a clear answer on whether to lock in or stay variable.

Read more: http://www.financialpost.com/news/Variable+rate+longer/3329442/story.html#ixzz0vSziPq1z

Variable Rate May No Longer Win