Mortgage Articles
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Understanding Fixed Mortgages
Understanding Fixed Mortgages: A fixed mortgage can feel like putting a fence around one of your household’s biggest expenses: for the length of your term, the interest rate—and usually the required principal-and-interest payment—stays put.
The Divorce Financing Ladder
The Divorce Financing Ladder: Divorce financing isn’t a single solution. I consider it to be a ladder. You start with the simplest and least expensive options first, and if those don’t work, we move down the ladder to look for a solution that works for you.
Bond Yield Premiums
Learn about how a bond yield (or the interest rate of a mortgage based on that bond) is composed of several premiums that compensate investors or lenders for various risks and factors associated with holding the bond (or mortgage).
Divorce Alternative Calculator User Guide
Divorce Alternative Calculator User Guide: This guide explains how to use the Divorce Alternative Calculator, what each section means, and how to interpret the results so you can evaluate whether an alternative mortgage solution might allow you to keep the home.
Divorce Refinance Calculator User Guide
Divorce Refinance Calculator User Guide: This guide walks you through how to use the Divorce Refinance Calculator step-by-step, what each section means, and how to interpret the results so you can make informed decisions about keeping the home.
CET1 Ratio Says Canadian Banks Are Strong
Learn how the Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratio is a crucial metric used to assess the financial strength and stability of a bank.
Debunking “Renting is Good”
Learn why articles saying renting is better than homeownership are just click bait for people struggling with affordable housing.
Mortgages: Grossing Up Income
When applying for a mortgage, to put the applicant in the best light with a lender to get the best rate possible, the question arises, "Can you gross up T4 and dividend income from a corporation?" In Canada, when completing a mortgage application for a client who owns...
Get Down Payment Help Through Ourboro
Unlock your homeownership dreams in Canada with Ourboro’s tailored down payment assistance and resources. Start your journey today.
Real Estate Makes Canadians Wealthy
Unlock the secret to wealth in Canada; learn how your household net worth is bolstered by smart real estate investments.
Deducting Interest Paid on Investment Income
Explore how deducting interest on your investment income can optimize your taxes in Canada. Learn tips for claiming interest deductions effectively.
A Guide to Assumable Mortgages
Discover how assumable mortgages can offer a cost-effective path to homeownership. Learn the benefits and process in our comprehensive guide.
Title Insurance – Protect Your Home
Safeguard your home investment with Title Insurance, offering security against unforeseen property title issues and peace of mind.
Required Mortgage Default Insurance
Discover why mortgage default insurance is required for high-ratio mortgages in Canada and how it protects your investment and lender from potential losses.
Quick Small Equity-Based Loans
… A Strategic Look at LendHub’s Quick Equity-Based Loans As an accountant or financial planner, you don’t get paid to react — you get paid to anticipate. You structure tax strategies, preserve capital, manage risk, and protect long-term wealth. But every now and...
Mortgage Documents: American Equivalent
The following is an explanation of the Canadian equivalent Americans may provide to support their mortgage application, and how these documents map to Canadian income documents. If you are an American looking to acquire a mortgage in Canada, be prepared to provide these documents.
How to Optimize Payment Frequency for a Fixed Mortgage
Optimizing payment frequency for a fixed-rate mortgage can significantly impact the overall interest you pay and how quickly you pay off your mortgage. Here's how to do it effectively: Understand Different Payment Frequencies Choose Accelerated Options Align Payments...
Second Mortgages Explained
… Position, Priority, and the Power—and Peril—of Layered Debt Second mortgages sit in one of the most misunderstood corners of Canadian real estate finance. They’re powerful, flexible, and sometimes exactly the right tool. They’re also easy to misuse, easy to...
Rental Investment Analyzer Manual
The Rental Investment Analyzer is a comprehensive financial analysis tool for evaluating Canadian rental properties. It converts user inputs (market rent, expenses, financing, etc.) into professional metrics like NOI, DSCR, cap rate, cash-on-cash return, and break-even rent.
Understanding Addbacks
Understanding Addbacks: In Canadian mortgage lending, addbacks are one of the most important (and most misunderstood) tools for turning taxable income into true cash-flow income—without pretending, stretching, or “making numbers up.”
Financial Power of Your Basement
Basement Apartment or Rental Suite: an owner-occupied rental — a basement suite, in-law unit, or secondary living space — can fundamentally change how a lender sees them, how much mortgage they qualify for, and how heavy their housing costs feel month to month.
Understanding Stated Income Business Income
Explore the nuances between stated income self declared and self-employed business income verification in Canada for mortgage solutions.
Understanding Canada’s Prime Rate
Explore why Canada’s Prime Rate varies among banks and how it impacts your finances. Unravel the nuances behind these differences today.
A Variable Rate Mortgage Strategy
When my clients purchased their dream home, they were faced with a daunting decision - choosing the right mortgage. The countless options, unfamiliar terms, and the weight of long-term financial commitment overwhelmed them. They needed guidance to develop their...
Using the Credit Limit Impact Calculator
Using the Credit Limit Impact Calculator. This calculator isn’t about shaming debt or telling you to cut up your cards. It’s about understanding how lenders actually think — and giving you back control.
Waiving the Condition of Financing
Waiving Condition of Financing: In practice, it’s one of the most stressful pressure points in the entire transaction, especially when markets are competitive and timelines are tight.
You Need to Switch Lenders Now
You Need to Switch Lenders Now: The Cost of Waiting is Rising.
Understanding Mortgage Administrators
Mortgage Administrator: Most people think the mortgage story begins and ends with the rate, the lender, and the payment. But once the ink dries and the funds are advanced, a quieter—but incredibly powerful—player steps onto the stage: the mortgage administrator.
Predatory Credit Limit Increases
Predatory Credit Limit Increases: In reality, this kind of unsolicited credit limit increase is a predatory tactic that can put you at a serious disadvantage – especially if you’re a mortgage client or planning to be one.
Collateral Transfer Programs
Collateral Transfer Program: You’ll learn what a collateral mortgage is, how it differs from a standard mortgage, why banks default to them, how mortgage penalties quietly reinforce borrower lock-in, and how collateral transfer programs can sometimes provide a clean, strategic exit—without unnecessary cost or friction.
When a Private Mortgage Is the Cheapest Option to Build
Private Mortgage is Cheapest Option: Projects don’t fail because money is expensive. They fail because money shows up too late, in the wrong amounts, or not at all.
When a Private Mortgage Is the Cheapest Option (Residential)
When a Private Mortgage is the Cheapest Option (Residential): In very specific owner-occupied scenarios, private financing—despite its eye-watering sticker price—can actually preserve more equity, avoid bigger losses, and produce a better financial outcome than a “cheaper” mortgage that arrives too late.
Understanding Light vs. Heavy Alternative Lending
Alternative Lending: Canada’s alternative lending space has two very different lanes — and knowing which lane a borrower belongs in can mean the difference between a smooth approval and a stressful, expensive surprise. This article breaks that down clearly, honestly, and without the fluff.
Big Banks Keep Winning at Renewal
Banks Winning Renewal Wars: If you’ve ever hit mortgage renewal time and thought, “Well this is convenient… my bank is suddenly very competitive,” you’re not imagining things. Mortgage renewals are where Canada’s chartered banks quietly flex their biggest muscles—often without advertising, without public rate wars, and without much resistance from borrowers.
USA vs Canada: Discharge Costs
USA vs Canadad: Discharge Costs: Why Americans don’t pay discharge costs and is their system better?
When a Private Mortgage Is the Cheapest Option (Investor)
Private Mortgage Is the Cheapest Option (Investor): But real estate investing isn’t about optics — it’s about outcomes. And in certain residential investment scenarios, private mortgages can actually be the cheapest capital available, even with a double-digit rate.
End of Term Discharge Costs
End of Term Discharge Costs: This is one of the most common assumptions borrowers make—and it’s also one of the most common places people get caught off guard. Ending a mortgage term and ending a mortgage itself are two very different things, and the difference shows up in the form of mortgage discharge costs.
Featured Publications
Articles
- Extended Amortizations and Hypothetical Calculations
Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) - Minimum Qualifying Rate for Uninsured Mortgages
Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) - Residential Mortgage Underwriting Practices and Procedures
Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) - Guideline on Existing Consumer Mortgage Loans in Exceptional Circumstances Financial Consumer Agency of Canada
Book: “The Program”
- Part 1 – Building Your Down Payment
- Part 2 – Mortgage Payoff Strategies
- Part 3 – Building Wealth Through Real Estate