After 30 years in mortgages
Chris Heidt has retired.
Chris spent more than 30 years helping people in the North Okanagan and the Shuswap get into their homes, the last 20 of them with Tekamar. He has earned the rest.
If you are a client of Chris's, nothing about your mortgage changes. Amie Den Biesen looks after his files now, and she has been working alongside him for the past two years.
A message from Chris
Chris told us he wanted to go out quietly, without a fuss. We are going to ignore that for a moment.
He got his broker's licence in 2007 and joined Tekamar the same year, working out of his Armstrong office. Before that he spent twelve years underwriting at Valley First and a stretch at RBC before that — which is a polite way of saying he had already read every lender's rulebook by the time he started arguing with them on his clients' behalf. He has arranged mortgages on nearly every kind of property there is, including, once, a fifty-foot fishing trawler.
Mostly, though, people remember him picking up the phone. Evenings. Weekends. Whenever it mattered.
Thank you, Chris. From all of us, and from a lot of families in this valley who own their homes because you knew what you were doing.
What happens to my mortgage?
Short version: nothing you need to do today.
Chris brokered under the Tekamar name from 2007 onward, so your mortgage has always been a Tekamar file. The only thing changing is who picks up the phone.
- Your mortgage itself is unchanged.
- Your lender, your rate, your term, your payment and your balance are all exactly as they were. A broker retiring does not touch the mortgage they arranged for you. There is nothing to re-sign.
- Your file moved to our office.
- Chris's records came to Tekamar along with the rest of his practice. Your renewal date is still tracked, and we will be in touch well before it arrives — same as always.
- Amie is your broker now.
- She has been handling the handover with Chris for the past two years, so she already knows most of his clients and most of his files. If you need anything — a renewal, a refinance, a question, a second opinion — she is the person to call.
- Chris's old email and phone are retiring with him.
- His Armstrong office line and his personal email are winding down. Use the form below, or reach our office directly, and it will get to the right person.
Meet Amie
Amie Den Biesen
Associate Broker
Amie is the gatekeeper of Tekamar, organizing and ensuring all deals flow nicely! Amie completed her Broker license in 2022.
Amie has spent the last two years working through Chris's files with him, so this is not a cold handoff. Chances are you have already spoken to her.
Ask Amie to call you
Leave your details and she will get back to you. No obligation, and no need to explain the whole history — she has the file.
Looking for something you used to find on Chris's site?
It all lives here now.
- Today's best rates Updated from the lenders we work with.
- Mortgage calculators Payments, affordability and purchase costs.
- Apply online Start an application whenever it suits you.
- Reverse mortgages The CHIP product Chris used to write about.
- Help centre Straight answers to common questions.
- Meet the team Everyone brokering at Tekamar today.