(Photo: 123RF)
Quebec company Welcome Spaces Technologies is launching a web assistant specializing in personal finance and powered by artificial intelligence on Monday.
Named Sérafin, in honor of the famous character from the TV series “Les belles histoire des pays d'en haut”, the web assistant can answer various questions related to personal finances for free, regardless of whether the user already has Basic knowledge or advanced knowledge of the topic.
This allows Sérafin to respond individually to internet users' questions, whether about their mortgage financing, their RRSP contributions or their eligibility for the Canadian Dental Care Plan.
Like ChatGPT, the web assistant takes the user's question, searches, compiles and interprets the relevant information and data to provide a fairly precise answer in a few seconds.
He asks additional questions himself if he needs clarification, such as how much the monthly mortgage payment would be or whether he would need the total amount of the loan plus principal.
The co-founders launched Sérafin to fill a gap in financial literacy in Quebec. (Photo from Welcome Spaces website)
Lack of literacy
Welcome Spaces co-founders Maly Charbonneau and Jean-Philippe Laforge say they launched Sérafin to fill a financial literacy gap in Quebec.
“The starting point was the survey we published last summer, which showed that 40% of 18-24 year olds did not answer basic questions about personal finance,” explains Jean-Philippe Laforge. With Sérafin we want to improve and expand people’s knowledge in this area.”
If a person's parents haven't provided financial education, they're left to fend for themselves, adds Maly Charbonneau. When a personal finance question comes up, you need to find the information, which isn't always easy.
“Instinctively, people go to Google,” she says. They often end up on a government site whose information is not tailored to their specific situation. The information is accessible via Google, but the challenge is finding it and then interpreting it.”
Otherwise, people often end up in Facebook groups where the advice is not necessarily truthful or verified, she emphasizes.
Not a planner
However, Welcome Spaces co-founders warn users that while Sérafin provides accurate answers, it is not a replacement for planners or financial experts.
The hope is that as technology, feedback and usage advances, Sérafin will become more accurate and eliminate errors.
“The idea behind using Sérafin is to be better informed before meeting with a planner or a financial expert and to be able to make more informed financial decisions,” explains Jean-Philippe Laforge. For example, when you visit an insurer, better information can help you get a better product. But it’s still the agent who sells it to you.”
The co-founders of Welcome Spaces point out that Sérafin is completely free and confidential. Access does not require the creation of an account, identifier or password.
Check
To check how Sérafin works, Lesaffaires carried out a test with Maly Charbonneau.
We asked Sérafin to evaluate the difference in monthly mortgage payment between a fixed rate and a five-year variable rate. He immediately asks about the loan amount and the amortization period. We'll give him $650,000 and 25 years.
The answer comes quickly: With a fixed rate of 7.04%, the monthly payment is $4,610.66, compared to $4,677.33 with a variable rate of 7.2%. The difference is $66.67 per month in favor of the fixed rate.
We decide to ask him to do the exercise with 3-year tariffs. At the fixed rate of 7.19%, the payment is $4,673.15, compared to $4,677.33 at the variable rate of 7.2%. The difference narrows to $4.18 per month.
And that with a deposit of 5%? It calculates in less than a minute the total loan of $617,500 (down payment of $32,500), a payment of $4439.49 for the fixed rate and $4443.48 for the variable rate, a difference of $3.97 per month.
“We also ran the test to get the monthly payment on a $1 million-plus home with a 5% down payment,” says Maly Charbonneau. Sérafin quickly informed us that for a property at this price we would definitely need to pay a 20% deposit.”
After verification (which took about fifteen minutes), this is actually the minimum requirement as the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) no longer insures properties over $1 million.
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