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The ones people actually ask, grouped so you can find yours. Every answer here is general — useful for understanding how something works, not a substitute for advice on your own file.
General information about Canadian mortgages. Nothing here is advice on your situation, an offer of credit, or a guarantee of any outcome.
Takes your application to many lenders instead of one, and advises on structure rather than just price. Banks, credit unions, monoline and broker-channel lenders all price and underwrite differently — a broker's job is knowing which one fits your situation.
On standard residential files, nothing. The lender pays the broker on completion. Where a fee does apply — some private or non-standard files — it is disclosed in writing before you commit to anything.
One credit check is pulled and used across lenders, rather than each lender pulling their own. That is a practical advantage of going through a broker rather than applying at several banks yourself.
No. Your bank may well be the right answer, and sometimes it is. The difference is that it will have been compared rather than assumed.
Renewal planning, penalty monitoring and answering questions as they come up. If you only hear from a broker at closing and never again, that is a transaction rather than a relationship.
A federal requirement to qualify at a higher figure than the one you will actually pay, so you can still afford the mortgage if borrowing costs rise. It applies to essentially every borrower and is the main reason people qualify for less than they expect.
It comes from your income, your existing debts, the property, and the stress test — not from a multiple of salary. What you can borrow and what you should borrow are also different numbers, and the second one matters more.
No. Plenty of good mortgages are written for people with imperfect credit. Score affects which lenders will look at the file and on what terms, so it is worth knowing where you stand early.
Yes. It takes more documentation — usually two years of returns and notices of assessment — and some lenders handle these files far better than others.
Usually yes, but often not in the way families expect. Lenders frequently want a parent on title as a co-borrower rather than standing behind the mortgage as a guarantor, and which of those is available depends on whether the parent’s income is needed to qualify, how much is going down, and how the mortgage is registered. It is worth settling before you are committed to a lender — the guides are here.
No. It is a lender's view based on what they have seen so far. Full approval comes after underwriting reviews your documents and the lender is satisfied with the specific property.
It is the penalty method used on most Canadian fixed mortgages when you break early. Some lenders calculate it against the discounted figure you signed and some against a published benchmark, and that single choice can multiply the penalty several times over on an identical mortgage.
Roughly 1.5% to 4% of the purchase price on top of the down payment, at the higher end in Toronto because of the municipal land transfer tax. Land transfer tax, legal fees, title insurance and adjustments make up most of it. The home inspection and the appraisal are separate — both are paid out of pocket while the offer is still conditional, so they are needed earlier and are not closing costs.
Insurance the lender requires when you put down less than 20%. It protects the lender, not you, and the premium is normally added to the mortgage. It is why the down payment tiers matter.
Most mortgages allow annual lump sums and payment increases within set limits. Those limits are worth reading before you sign, because they differ considerably and they are what you use to reduce a penalty later.
You pay a prepayment charge. On a variable mortgage it is usually three months' interest. On a fixed mortgage it is normally the greater of three months' interest or an interest differential, and the difference between those two can be tens of thousands.
Months before it arrives, not when the letter does. Renewal is the one moment you have full freedom to move without a penalty, and signing the first offer by return post is how that freedom gets wasted.
No. You are free to move to any lender that will approve you, and moving normally means requalifying. Staying is often simpler but should be a decision rather than a default.
A renewal continues the same mortgage balance with new terms at the end of a term. A refinance changes the amount — usually borrowing more against the property — and requires full qualification whenever you do it.
Sometimes it is genuinely the right answer and sometimes it moves a problem rather than solving it. The honest test is what happens to the credit cards afterwards, and whether the total interest over the full amortization actually falls.
It depends on your plans and on what you would pay to get out early. A long term with a punitive exit clause is a different product from a long term with a fair one, even when they look identical on paper.
These pages take one subject and work through it properly.
Down payments, the FHSA and Home Buyers’ Plan, rebates and regional assistance. First Home Hub →
Bridge financing, porting, and buying first versus selling first. Next Home Hub →
How the interest differential works and why lenders differ so much. Penalty Protector Pro →
Reverse mortgages, explained with the trade-offs rather than around them. Reverse Mortgages →
Nine Canadian calculators, including affordability, closing costs and purchase costs. Calculators →
Articles on renewals, credit, rebates and the market. Insights →
Most good questions are not. Send it over — there is no cost, no credit check and no obligation attached to asking.