Are the banks doing an incredible job of retaining customers or are Canadians just too lazy to shop around when renewing their mortgages?

One finding of a survey by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. released this week was that 89% of consumers renewing their mortgage stay with the same financial institution. And 68% stay when they are doing a refinancing.

"They stay with the lender because of rate and they leave the lender because of service," says Pierre Serré, vice-president, insurance product and business development, with CMHC.

Consumers are more aggressive shoppers when they are seeking a mortgage to buy their first home than they are upon renewal. Only 57% of first-time buyers took out their mortgage with their existing financial institution.

Rob McLister, a mortgage broker and editor of Canadian Mortgage Trends, says the banks are doing more to retain customers but there is a pretty good chance you won't get the best deal if you renew automatically.

Although there is a growing trend towards alternatives, lawns remain the dominant landscape feature of many Canadian homes. Lawns provide open views and a wear-tolerant soft surface for active recreation and they are relatively inexpensive to install.

Click here to read the entire CMHC article

As in 2010, the 2011 survey findings indicate that Canadians feel confident in how they manage their mortgage debt. Three-quarters of recent buyers feel it is very important to pay off their mortgage as soon as possible. In fact, 39% of recent buyers have their mortgage payment set higher than the minimum required. Further, since taking out their mortgage, 20% of recent buyers have already made a lump sum payment to their mortgage.

After deciding to look for information about mortgage options, half (51%) of recent mortgage consumers started with a mortgage or financial professional. The remaining half of respondents reported having started with family or friends, the Internet, or a real estate agent. However, throughout the process of obtaining a mortgage, 81% of recent buyers, at some point, relied on a mortgage professional (either a mortgage lender or mortgage broker) for advice and consultation.

Over three-quarters of recent buyers noted they received advice on mortgage terms and conditions, as well as whether to take a variable or fixed interest rate. More than 40% also received a recommendation to accelerate their mortgage payments in order to pay off their mortgages sooner.

81% of recent buyers, at some point, relied on a mortgage professional (either a mortgage lender or mortgage broker) for advice and consultation

Advice is not limited to just details about the mortgage. Recent buyers are also receiving recommendations to use specific professionals involved in the housing market such as home inspectors, lawyers, and real estate agents.

First time homebuyers in British Columbia are aware of the challenges of entering into home ownership, and many are taking steps so that they don’t have to do it alone.

According to the TD Canada Trust First Time Homebuyers Report, “56% of first time homebuyers in B.C. are looking for a home with a rental unit. Eighty-five percent think the unit will generate between $500 - $1,000 per month and seven-in-ten (67%) say the extra income will go towards paying their mortgage.”

This suggests an interesting strategic move for this group as a whole, looking to take on home ownership, increase personal cash flow and build maximum equity all at the same time.

"Taking in a tenant can be an effective way to supplement your income and pay off your mortgage faster," says Barry Rathburn, Manager, Residential Mortgages, and TD Canada Trust. "If you have a rental unit, I'd recommend exploring flexible mortgage options. These products allow you to pay more towards your mortgage when you can afford to and give you the peace of mind of knowing that if something changed financially - for instance your tenant moved out during the same month that your furnace broke down - you could miss payments with no penalty."

Notably, the survey also determined that first time home-buyers in BC took the longest time to save up for a down payment- and were also shelling out larger down payments compared to their provincial counterparts.

The report says, “Nearly six-in-ten say that they have been saving for their first home for three years or more (57% versus 47% nationally) and they are twice as likely to be putting down a down payment of more than 25% (17% versus 10% nationally). Not surprisingly, given B.C.'s infamously expensive real estate, buyers in B.C. are most likely to need a mortgage to finance their purchase (93% versus 87% nationally).

In the province, 47% of first time buyers intend to buy their first home on their own (rather than with a co-purchaser). 57% of men will buy on their own compared to 33% of women.

Not only do these first time homebuyers have a plan to build equity, they are very clear on what they want as well, and are not overly willing to compromise. 53% said that they would not negotiate on price; 44% said they were not willing to compromise on number of bedrooms while 35% said they would not waver on the number of bathrooms.

They are however, willing to compromise on things like proximity to recreational activities, features of the home, and layout of the home.

The findings of this survey underscore that there is a new breed of first time homebuyer emerging. They are educated, strategic and patient—and they know very much what there expectations are in home ownership.