The surprise announcement that mortgage rules will change again on July 9 has many homebuyers scrambling to get in under the wire with the old rules.

These latest new rules – amortization limit of 25 years and refinance limits of 80 per cent - are designed to lower debt levels, enforce some belt-tightening, and promote savings through home ownership. You should get in touch with me now if you are planning to buy or have a mortgage pre-approval with an amortization of 30 years. You must have an agreement of purchase and sale before July 9 in order to keep that amortization, and any new applications before July 9 must fund by December 31, 2012

If you are an existing homeowner, the new parameters will only apply if you need to increase the amount of your insured mortgage