Find your mortgage decision
Choose the decision in front of you first: contract shape, rate risk, insurance, qualifying test, or where to get advice.
What a mortgage actually is
A mortgage is a loan to buy property, secured by the property itself. If you stop paying, the lender can ultimately take the home — that's what "secured" means. You repay the loan in regular payments that cover two things: interest (the lender's charge for lending) and principal (the actual amount you borrowed). Early on, most of each payment is interest; over time the balance tips toward principal, and your ownership stake — your equity — grows.
Compare the mortgage choices before reading deep
Pre-approval
Official sourceTerm and amortization
Official sourceFixed vs. variable
Official sourceInsured mortgage
Official sourceStress test
Official sourceThat's the whole concept. Everything else — terms, types, rates, the stress test — is just the structure around it. The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) publishes plain-language guidance on every piece of this, and is the neutral consumer authority to lean on as you learn.[1] Let's take the decisions one at a time.
Term vs. amortization: the two clocks
This is the distinction that confuses almost every first-timer, because both are measured in years. They're completely different clocks.
A 5-year term inside a 25-year amortization
The amortization is the total time to pay the mortgage off completely — commonly 25 years. The term is the length of your current contract with the lender — commonly 5 years — after which you renew (or move) for another term, at whatever rates exist then.[2] So a typical buyer signs a 5-year term within a 25-year amortization, then renews roughly five times over the life of the loan. A longer amortization lowers each payment but means more interest paid overall; a shorter one does the reverse. One recent change worth knowing: since December 15, 2024, first-time buyers — and anyone buying a newly built home — can take an insured mortgage with a 30-year amortization, trading a lower monthly payment for more total interest. Confirm the current rule with your lender.
Open vs. closed, fixed vs. variable
Two more either-or choices define your mortgage. Take them together:
Closed
Most common. Lower rate, but limited prepayment — paying it off early or breaking it can trigger a penalty. Best if you'll keep the mortgage for the term.
Open
Higher rate, but you can repay any amount, anytime, without penalty. Useful if you expect to pay off or sell soon.
And the rate type, the choice most buyers agonize over:
Fixed rate
The interest rate is locked for the whole term. Your payment never changes — predictable, easier to budget, and immune to rate rises during the term. You pay for that certainty with a slightly higher starting rate, and breaking it early can carry a larger penalty.[3]
There's no universally right answer — it depends on your tolerance for payment uncertainty and your read on where rates are heading, which even experts get wrong. FCAC's comparison of fixed and variable is a neutral place to weigh the trade-off.[3]
Insured vs. uninsured
This one isn't a choice — it's determined by your down payment, and it carries over directly from Saving for a Home. If you put down less than 20%, your mortgage is insured: mortgage default insurance (from CMHC or a private insurer) is mandatory, protects the lender, and is added to your loan.[5] If you put down 20% or more, your mortgage is generally uninsured, meaning no mortgage default insurance premium. The stress-test rule still matters, but the official OSFI rule specifically governs uninsured mortgages, while insured mortgages follow insurer and federal mortgage-insurance qualification rules.[6]
The stress test: how much can you borrow
The rule that surprises buyers most: the bank won't lend you the maximum you could afford at today's rate. By federal rule, lenders must check that you could still make payments if rates were higher — the "stress test." It's why your pre-approval amount is usually lower than you expected.
The minimum qualifying rate (uninsured mortgages)
For uninsured mortgages (20%+ down), the federal regulator OSFI requires lenders to qualify you at a minimum rate:
OSFI confirmed in its early-2026 review that this rate remains unchanged.[6] So if your actual mortgage rate were 4.5%, you'd have to prove you could afford payments at 6.5%; if your rate were 3%, you'd be tested at the 5.25% floor.[6] You don't pay the higher rate — you just have to qualify as if you might.
For insured mortgages, CMHC's debt-service calculations also use the greater of the contract interest rate plus 2%, or 5.25%.[7] The purpose is the same across both: the test exists to protect you, and the financial system, from a situation where a rate increase or income shock leaves you unable to pay.[6]
Since December 16, 2024, eligible low-ratio mortgage borrowers switching lenders at renewal may be exempt from reapplying the minimum qualifying rate, if the loan amount and amortization remain the same. Confirm eligibility before relying on this.[6] Rules in this area are under active review, so confirm the current position with OSFI, FCAC, or a mortgage professional when your time comes.
What lenders also check
The stress test is only one gate. Lenders also look at your income, debts, credit history, down-payment source, employment stability, and the property itself. For insured mortgages, CMHC also applies debt-service limits — currently a maximum Gross Debt Service (GDS) ratio of 39% and Total Debt Service (TDS) ratio of 44% — alongside creditworthiness requirements.[7]
Pre-approval, and broker vs. bank
Before you shop for a home, get a mortgage pre-approval — a lender's assessment of how much you could borrow and at what rate, usually holding that rate for a set period. It's more rigorous than a casual "pre-qualification" estimate, and it tells you your real budget and signals to sellers you're serious.[1] A pre-approval is not a guarantee: final approval depends on the specific property and confirming your details.
You can get a mortgage two main ways. A bank (or credit union) offers its own products directly. A mortgage broker shops multiple lenders on your behalf, which can surface rates you wouldn't find alone. Both are legitimate; comparing at least a couple of options is almost always worth it, since even a small rate difference compounds into thousands over an amortization.[1]
⚠ Borrow for the payment, not the maximum
Passing the stress test tells you the most a lender will give you — not the amount you should take. Leave room for property tax, insurance, maintenance, and the rate being higher at your next renewal. The comfortable mortgage is usually smaller than the maximum mortgage.
Your mortgage-basics checklist
Walk into the conversation prepared
Seven things to have straight before you talk to a lender.
A mortgage isn't as complicated as its vocabulary makes it sound: a secured loan you'll renew several times, with a rate type you choose and a size set by a test designed to keep you safe. Learn these basics, get pre-approved to find your real budget, compare your options, and borrow for the payment you'll be comfortable with for years — not the maximum a lender will allow. That's the foundation; The Home Buying Process, Step by Step covers what happens once you start shopping.
Sources & further reading
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC), "Mortgages" — plain-language consumer guidance on how mortgages work, getting pre-approved (and how it differs from pre-qualification), and shopping/comparing lenders including banks and brokers. canada.ca — FCAC mortgages
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, "Choosing a mortgage that is right for you" — explains mortgage term and amortization period and how they differ. canada.ca — FCAC choosing a mortgage
- Financial Consumer Agency of Canada — fixed vs. variable interest rates and open vs. closed mortgages: fixed rates lock the payment for the term; variable rates can change; open mortgages allow penalty-free prepayment while closed mortgages generally do not. canada.ca — FCAC
- Bank of Canada — the policy interest rate influences lenders' prime rates, to which variable-rate mortgages are tied. bankofcanada.ca — policy rate
- CMHC, "Mortgage Loan Insurance Explained" — mortgage default insurance is mandatory when the down payment is under 20%, protects the lender, and is added to the mortgage. cmhc-schl.gc.ca — mortgage loan insurance
- Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI), "Minimum qualifying rate for uninsured mortgages" — for uninsured mortgages (20%+ down), the MQR is the greater of the contract rate + 2% or 5.25%; OSFI's early-2026 review left it unchanged; since late 2024, straight switches at renewal (same amount and amortization) are exempt from the stress test. A parallel rule applies to insured mortgages via the Department of Finance. osfi-bsif.gc.ca — minimum qualifying rate
- CMHC — insured (high-ratio) mortgage qualification: lenders calculate Gross Debt Service (GDS) and Total Debt Service (TDS) ratios using the greater of the contract rate plus 2% or 5.25%, with current maximum thresholds of a 39% GDS ratio and 44% TDS ratio, alongside creditworthiness and other requirements. cmhc-schl.gc.ca — homeowner mortgage loan insurance
