Nelly Yuzbasiyan (pictured, centre), director of regional sales at Equitable Bank, also highlighted a significant gap between many Canadians’ target for retirement savings and what they’ve actually put away.
That means a probable “huge” uptick in reverse mortgages is on the way in the years ahead, she predicted, as more Canadians tap into home equity to compensate for that savings gap.
That trend is important for brokers, according to moderator Leah Zlatkin of Mortgage Outlet: “Reach out to your clients and talk to them about their parents,” she advised the broker community. “Reach out to your contacts and talk to them about the older people in their families that are looking to retire.
“If you’re feeling like your book is a little slow right now, all of those mining strategies, mining for demographics and things like that, are really going to help you boost your book when we’re seeing the markets a little bit slower for this time of year.”
Brokers, borrowers facing familiar challenges at present
In the current market, stretched affordability and higher interest rates are keeping plenty of hopeful homebuyers on the sidelines. But Reaza Ali (pictured, second from right), speaking on the same panel, also encouraged brokers to realize that there are still Canadians in a position to purchase right now.