Homewise is a Free Online Mortgage Service That Saves You Time and Money

Jesse Abrams knows better than anyone that the traditional process for getting a mortgage “sucks,” and it’s easy to see why.

Abrams, who previously worked with  one of Canada’s largest banks mortgage department, quickly realized that the system was tedious, out of touch, and designed to extract as much profit from homebuyers as possible.

“That opened my eyes a lot in terms of the mortgage market, but then I actually bought my first home, and I used one of those rate aggregation websites, and it just confused the heck of me,” he says. “Then I actually used a classic mortgage broker, which involved a ton of paper work, lots of in-person discussion, and even after I was told who my mortgage was with there was no real reason why it was best decision for me.”

Abrams thought there had to be a better way to make one of life’s most important financial decisions, and after discovering that there were no alternatives, he partnered up with a 30-year mortgage industry veteran to build his own.

Founded in 2018, Homewise offers a completely free service that provides Canadians with a range of mortgage options, and offers a transparent overview of the pros and cons of each.

“Shopping around can save you thousands of dollars on your mortgage, and not just based on the rate; but we also help clients understand what the key features are that can save them money,” he says. “Features like pre-payment privileges and accelerated payments can save them a lot of money by paying down their interest more quickly.”

Abrams adds that when shopping for mortgages few customers are aware of hidden fees and penalties, especially when it comes to breaking their mortgage.

“A lot of people don’t think they’ll ever break their mortgage, but the vast majority of homebuyers do at some point before the end of their term, whether to sell their home or to refinance their mortgage,” he says. “We help clients understand what their best options are to save money today and into the future, because those penalties can sometimes add up to $20,000 or $30,000.”

Homewise offers a completely free service to customers located anywhere in Canada, whether they are buying their first home or their last, renewing their mortgage or refinancing their mortgage.

Unlike a typical rate comparison website, which only provide a side-by-side comparison of mortgage rates, Homewise takes the buyers full financial picture into consideration before providing options tailored to their specific needs.

“We have a really easy, five-minute, online application that you can fill out on your phone or your computer any time or place,” says Abrams, adding that the application doesn’t require any information the user wouldn’t have available on hand. “Once they finish their application they’ll visit their dashboard, which provides an overview of their profile, and will soon include an overview of their options as well.”

Homewise works with over 30 banks, credit unions and monoline lenders to find users the best mortgage possible for their specific needs. Within ten minutes of applying users receive an email from a mortgage advisor that invites them to book a 15-minute conversation to go over those options and answer any questions they may have, absolutely free.

“If they want preapproval, we can submit them for preapproval; if they want to make a purchase, we will then collect some documents and submit them for purchase, and the same thing for refinancing and mortgage switching as well,” he says. “We then manage the lender relationship from there, dealing with all documentation, dispelling any confusion, making sure the client understands the fine print and the key features, and help them close on their mortgage as fast and easy as possible.”

Unlike the traditional, manual process for shopping around for a mortgage, users don’t need to wait on hold or in line at a bank, they don’t need to fill out the same paper work over and over, and will only have their credit information pulled once.

“If you were to go to a bank you would have to go during bank hours, if you’re meeting them in person you have to schedule a meeting, if you’re calling them, you have to call a 1-800 number, it’s just constant waiting,” he says. “With us you can apply any time, any place; in fact, most of our applications happen after 5:00”

Homewise has even helped customers who had been waiting weeks for their bank to approve their mortgage secure the exact same mortgage from the exact same bank within a matter of days, even at a lower rate.

“Often clients will come to us after speaking directly to the lender themselves, and we’re able to get them a lower rate than they were offered from that lender, because we have a direct line to the source and we get promotions and discounts because of our high-volume deals,” Abrams says.

“We get to help people realize their home buying dreams, and do it in a way that saves them a lot of time, money, and confusion. “ – Jesse Abrams, Homewise

That is why, since it’s founding just over two years ago, Homewise has already helped tens of thousands of Canadians with mortgages totalling nearly $3.5 billion. The company currently has an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 on Google, with over 100 5-star reviews.

“We get paid by the lender on closing, and that doesn’t increase the cost for the client in any way,” says Abrams, adding that a portion of those revenues is also donated to Habitat for Humanity.

“People always say to us ‘wait, it’s online, it’s easier, faster, more transparent, you do most of the work for us, you give us an advisor, we save the most money and everything is completely free; what’s the catch?” he says. “It’s almost too good to be true, but that’s what we love about our business; we get to help people realize their home buying dreams, and do it in a way that saves them a lot of time, money, and confusion. “

CLICK HERE TO APPLY FOR A MORTGAGE WITH HOMEWISE