New feature lowers monthly payments, assists in managing cash flow.
Mississauga, Ontario - April 28, 2006 GE Money, the Canadian consumer-lending unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), today launched a 40-year amortization option to its mortgages - the first lender to do so in Canada. This option is designed to help combat rising home prices and enable individuals to enter the housing market, while helping to manage cash flow.
Currently, GE Money mortgages are offered via brokers in Ontario, Alberta and British Columbia.
"Offering a broader list of products and options is part of our growth strategy," says Rick Lunny, president of GE Money Mortgages. "A 40-year amortization follows our goal of providing mortgage products to those for whom the rising cost of real estate or their credit situation is a barrier to entering the market."
GE Money mortgages are primarily directed to consumers who may find it difficult to qualify for traditional bank-originated mortgage loans. These include individuals who have recently immigrated to Canada, are self-employed, or have less-than-perfect credit.
"The GE Money 40-year mortgage helps bring down the customer's monthly payment which gives many new homebuyers the option to enter the housing market sooner, purchase a larger home, or a home in a market where real estate prices are rising rapidly," adds Lunny. "It can also act as a short-term solution to assist individuals through difficult financial times."
The first in Canada to offer both 30- and 40-year amortizations, GE Money introduced its mortgages in October, and plans to offer them nationwide by the end of 2006.
Speed, simplicity and consistency are key features of the GE Money approach. Brokers receive loan approvals in as little as a few seconds and always under two hours, and funds are delivered in as little as five days. The offering also features a unique, risk-based pricing model that promises consistent responses, using a simple, web-based application tool.
Mortgage brokers or prime lenders interested in offering GE Money mortgages can visit www.gemoney.ca for more information.
GE Money is part of GE Consumer Finance-Americas and provides private label credit card and MasterCard programs to consumers, and lending options for retailers in key industries across Canada. GE Money also is a provider of alternative residential mortgages. More information can be found at www.gemoney.ca.
With more than $163 billion in assets, GE Consumer Finance, a unit of General Electric Company, is a leading provider of credit services to consumers, retailers and auto dealers in 50 countries around the world. GE Consumer Finance, based in Stamford, Connecticut (USA), offers a range of financial products, including private label credit cards, personal loans, bank cards, auto loans and leases, mortgages, corporate travel and purchasing cards, debt consolidation and home equity loans, and credit insurance. More information can be found at www.geconsumerfinance.com.
GE is Imagination at Work -- a diversified technology, media and financial services company focused on solving some of the world's toughest problems. With products and services ranging from aircraft engines, power generation, water processing and security technology to medical imaging, business and consumer financing, media content and advanced materials, GE serves customers in more than 100 countries and employs more than 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.ge.com.
In Canada, GE has more than 10,000 employees, 19 major manufacturing plants and more than 150 sales and service locations across the country.
Troy Underhill
Communications Manager, GE Money
(780) 990-2207
[email protected]
Ken Darling
Masto Public Relations
[email protected]
1-518-786-6488