The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

THFUEitArj Wednesday September Canada Trust HOME OF THE WEEK BUNGALOW ON A ACRE LOT Raised bungalow on a very attractive lot 189 spacious foyer eat in kitchen with dining room three large bedrooms home is completely broadloomed large rec room with bedroom not complete large family room with walkout to pool and hedged yard 61900 HALTON HILLS AREA PARADE OF HOMES By Mack Dire tor Publication Canadian Real The power and Influence of women In every aspect of Canadian life Is nothing short of spectacular and is growing every passing year In the not locKlistant past teaching nursing secretarial work light factory work and retailing dominated the fields In which women were found outside the home But that period in history has probably gone forever Now medicine law engineering real estate the social sciences administration and many other fields arc cm ploying more and more women many of them In executive positions They pack a clout In the financial arena by capably holding down more than one third of the country Jobs They have even more financial power than that figure would Indicate by being the budget chief In many Canadian households Yet with all their financial acumen and responsibility women have until recently feu it difficult to obtain credit in their own names if married to convince mortgage lenders that the full 100 per cent of their incomes should be used when calculating the eligibility of herself and husband for a mortgage loan In the pre birth control pill era lenders had good reason lobe apprehensive of pregnancy followed by a loss of income and possible default In mortgage payments Gut in this generation for the first time In the long history of man couples have absolute control over family planning Some lenders have been slow in coming around to the realliallon that 100 per cent of a wife Income should be considered in deciding on the eligibility of a couple for a mortgage It can make a tremendous difference- the difference between being able to qualify for a mortgage and being forced to remain a tenant for an indefinite period into the future The advice of experts to couples denied a mortgage by a lender who won accept 100 per cent of a Income for qualifying purposes is to shop around There are scores of lenders who will Soon there may be none who won However there ore other things a mortgage lender and a mortgage insurance company will look for before granting mortgage loans James McAtoy vicepresident of The Mortgage In surance Company of Canada IMICC says equally im porta as the amount of income is the quality of the in come and the stability of the Job or of the working wife The company has found that in some cases a working wife scores higher than her husband on both Income and security of tenure for example a high school teacher married to a factory worker It also found that some women had secure Jobs paying In the to range married to men who bad great expectations but who would have to wait several years before coming as much as their wives The length of time both partners have been employed and the number of Jobs they have held In the recent past are also considerations In granting mortgages Persons who jump from Job to Job are not always the best can dldates for a long term mortgage The stability of the job is often more important from a lenders point of view than Its prestige tor Instance a waitrca who has worked in the some for years would likely receive more favorable consideration than a high school teacher In the first year of her first Job As the school population declines the teacher Job could be in jeopardy but the public will continue to patronize restaurants Another thing lenders look for before granting a couple Die largest loan of their Uvea is how well hey have handled Ihclr credit In the past or If they are presently fended in relation to income A couple with a combined income of IB a year may be In a better financial shape febtwlse than a couple earning While applicants for a mortgage loan may feel there Is title risk involved for a lender because he has the house as security the simple truth is that lenders are in the lending business and don want to be saddled with either a time consuming foreclosure action or the expense attached to It They don want the house they want regular monthly mortgage payments Unfortunately marital disruption Is one of the largest single causes of couples falling behind In their mortgage payments particularly In new homes where the the husband and wife are Involved In a recent sample month of applications posing ugh MICC Mr McAvoy noted that In Toronto 48 per cent of the new home sales invoked both husbands and wives Incomes The figure was per cent In Ottawa per cent in Winnipeg 34 per cent in Edmonton and per cent In Halifax Many purchases would not have been possible If it were not for the contributions of a working wife and the change in attitude of lenders to accept 100 per cent of her earnings to permit the couple to qualify The change by mortgage lenders to accepting wives as full and equal in qualifying has been a gradual thing Mr McAvoy recalled The shift began in the 1960 s when only 50 per cent of a wife Income was used But It was not until the 70s that the full 100 per cent was accepted and the transition of lenders became more complete As Mr McAvoy sees it the Pill is only one reason for the change In attitude A big part of it he said has been the Increasing role women arc playing In the work force and In professional life Women are gaining more confidence and there are more opportunities for them In business and In the professions There Is no question that without the help of women thousands of houses would never have been purchased They have contributed greatly not only to the pride and happiness of the family unit by being employed but also to the prosperity of the country But there Is another group of women who are separated widowed or divorced What ore their op portunities for becoming home owners How do mortgage lenders treat them They used to be bad news to lenders Mr recalled But today with a good income and reasonable security they ore treated equally At one time lenders would try to tipsy toe around it But these women have no trouble In getting a lender today