How personalized advice helped Sumandeep buy her first home

Coming to Canada on my own, I was nervous but excited at the same time. The language here is different, so I was worried about how I was going to do it. But, day by day, I started college, working part-time, and learning the language and it gave me confidence.

I wasn’t financially independent when I came to Canada. I had some savings but mostly I would spend it on things that weren’t useful to me. I wasn’t thinking about saving for my future until I met my advisor, Vaishali, when I accompanied my uncle to one of his meetings with her at CIBC. She asked me how I manage my finances and, through our conversation, I realized if I understood finances better, then I could save more.

We looked at different investment options and I became interested in buying a home with my cousin. Vaishali had me create a budget — that was the first step — and she helped me understand how much I needed for the downpayment and how much I needed to save every month and the benefit of choosing a home that could have rental income. She helped me understand the exact steps I needed to take, which made the process much easier.

“Most people only think about their down payment when buying a home, but monthly expenses are always more than just that,” says Vaishali. “You have property taxes and maintenance too. I always recommend that you should pay yourself first — keep some money aside and then spend. So I asked Sumandeep how she would fulfill her dreams if she didn’t have a savings plan in place, and that really stuck with her.”

It’s a very different experience than what I was used to in India. Advisors here are very supportive and they follow up with you. Vaishali has given me good guidance for my future, and I’ve even started calling her auntie because I feel such a strong connection to her. Homeownership wasn’t a top priority for me when I came here, but I’m 26 now and really happy I did it.

It’s like a dream come true. If I could look back at my younger self and tell her about my life today, I would tell her how I have gotten everything I wanted in life. I am proud of myself — and I will get more and more in the future and do even better.