Region served
A collection account has to be settled or explained before the file goes out. What that changes for an application in Grand Montréal.
The score matters less than the story behind it. A lender wants to know how long ago the problem was settled, whether your credit has recovered since, and whether the file holds up without that line. A proposal or bankruptcy discharged two years ago, with credit rebuilt, doesn’t get treated like a late payment from last month.
Your full credit report, discharge or release papers for anything that’s settled, and proof of payment on what remains. Add your notices of assessment and proof of your down payment. The bigger the down payment, the more room there is to negotiate the rest.
A bankruptcy, a proposal, a judgment or a collection account does not close the door for good. The lender wants to know how long ago it was settled and what you have rebuilt since, in Grand Montréal as anywhere in Quebec.
The lender keeps what it can verify on its own: payments made on time for several months, balances going down, credit used without going over the limit. An explanation that leaves no trace on your report does not carry much weight.
An alternative lender costs more than a bank. The real question is what that buys you: time to rebuild, or a bridge to a conventional rate. The exit plan matters more than the rate, in Grand Montréal as anywhere.
A stopgap is only a stopgap if the way out is written down: what has to change, by when, and what the move back to ordinary financing costs. Otherwise the temporary arrangement becomes permanent.
To prepare
Yes. It all runs by phone, email or video call, and documents go through online. We can meet in person, but most files get settled without anyone having to travel.
Often two years after discharge, with credit rebuilt and paid on time since. Some lenders say yes sooner if the down payment is bigger. What you have rebuilt counts, not just the time that has passed.
Pick the situation closest to yours.
Contact
Buying, renewing, refinancing, or something a bit out of the ordinary: tell us where you’re at, even if it’s still fuzzy. Mathieu gets back to you with next steps and the documents to pull together.