Mortgage Refinancing · Alberta & Saskatchewan
A refinance is a new mortgage. See what yours could save you every month.
Your home has built equity while life kept moving. Whether you want to fold higher-interest balances into one manageable payment, fund a renovation, or restructure your term: run your rough numbers in our 3-step savings check and let Rohit Sachdeva walk through the real math with you.
Prefer the full application? Start standard pre-qualification
What homeowners refinance for
Equity you have built by paying down the mortgage, or through the home rising in value, can be borrowed back. These are the usual reasons.
Renovations
Borrow against your equity for work on the home and repay it over the mortgage, rather than on a shorter, higher-rate personal loan.
Paying out higher-interest balances
If you carry credit cards, a line of credit or a car loan, a refinance can pay them out at closing and fold them into one mortgage payment.
A large expense or an investment
Education, helping family with a down payment, or a rental property. A refinance turns equity into cash at a mortgage rate.
How a refinance works
Start with your numbers
Your balance, a realistic value for the home, anything you want paid out, and when your term ends. If you are mid-term, ask your lender for the exact penalty to break it. That one figure can decide the answer.
One application, many lenders
Your file goes to the lenders whose rules fit it. Banks, credit unions and monoline lenders price refinances differently, and the penalty terms, prepayment room and portability matter as much as the rate.
Appraisal and approval
The lender orders an appraisal and qualifies you at the stress-test rate. The appraised value sets the ceiling; your income, debts and credit set how much of it you qualify for.
Close with a lawyer
Your lawyer pays out the old mortgage and anything being consolidated, registers the new mortgage, and sends you the remaining funds.
What to know before you refinance
Up to 80% of the home's value
A refinance can total up to 80% of the home's appraised value, including what you already owe. What you can access is that limit minus your balance, less the costs of the refinance.
The stress test applies
You qualify at the greater of 5.25% or your contract rate plus 2%. Plenty of equity does not change that: qualifying is about income and debts.
No default insurance
Refinances can't be default-insured, so lenders price them as uninsured mortgages. The rate on a refinance can differ from the purchase rates you see advertised.
Penalties and closing costs
Breaking a term early usually costs three months' interest on a variable rate; on a fixed rate, usually the greater of three months' interest or the interest-rate differential. At maturity there is no penalty. Expect appraisal, legal and title costs either way.
Illustrative example
How the 80% limit works
- Appraised value
- $600,000
- 80% limit, less a $350,000 balance
- $480,000 − $350,000
- Room to borrow, before costs
- $130,000
Before any penalty, legal fees and appraisal. Your income and the stress test decide how much of that room you qualify for.
Rates and figures shown are illustrative, subject to change without notice, and are not an approval or a commitment to lend.
Straight answers
Up to 80% of your home's appraised value, minus your current balance and the costs of the refinance. The appraisal sets the value. Your income, your other debts and the stress test decide how much of that room you qualify for.
At renewal there is no prepayment penalty, which often makes it the cheapest time. Mid-term, the penalty can outweigh the savings: usually three months' interest on a variable rate, and on a fixed rate the greater of three months' interest or the interest-rate differential. Get the exact figure from your lender before you decide.
Yes. A refinance is qualified at the greater of 5.25% or your contract rate plus 2%. The exemption for straight switches at renewal only covers moving the same balance to a new lender; borrowing more makes it a refinance.
Yes. A refinance replaces the whole mortgage, so the new rate applies to the full balance, not only the new money. If your current rate is lower than today's, a HELOC, or waiting for your renewal, can work out cheaper.
A refinance gives you a lump sum inside one amortizing mortgage. A HELOC is a revolving line you draw on as needed: up to 65% of the home's value on its own, or 80% combined with a mortgage. Some homeowners use both.
Yes. Lenders need to see qualifying income, so how it is documented matters: tax returns with legitimate add-backs, or an alternative program where that fits better. Self-employed and complex files are a large part of what Rohit does.
Related reading
Two worked articles on using equity, and the alternative to a lump sum.
See how much your home equity can save you each month
Run our 60-second Refinance & Equity Savings Check to see your accessible equity and monthly payment options. Rohit reviews every file personally. No credit check to start.
Prefer the full mortgage application instead? Start standard pre-qualification