Region served
When the inspection turns up a problem in Grand Montréal, the lender reassesses the property, not you. Structure, roof and water infiltration worry it. Cosmetics do not.
The property is what gets assessed here. Lenders ask: is the problem contained? What does the repair cost? Will the value hold afterward? Some refuse until the work is done. Some lend now and keep part of the money back until it’s finished.
Inspection or expert report, itemized quotes, location certificate. After damage, include the insurance report and proof of the repairs done. This paperwork drives the decision more than your paycheque does.
What a lender approves and what you can comfortably pay are rarely the same number. Settle on the second one first: in Grand Montréal, taxes, insurance and heating come on top of the mortgage every month.
Count the timeline backwards from the signing date: lender review, mortgage insurance if it applies, the appraisal, and then the documents that will always be missing. A financing condition that is too short costs you an extension to ask the seller for, in Grand Montréal as anywhere.
The lender approves the property as much as the borrower. Condition, intended use, anything the inspection or the title flags: any of it can stall a Grand Montréal file that looked settled on the numbers alone.
On top of the down payment: notary fees, tax adjustments and transfer duty. In Grand Montréal the welcome tax often shows up months after the purchase, when the move and the furniture have already drained the account. That is exactly why people forget it.
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.
It depends on how big the problem is and what the repairs cost. Several lenders finance with a holdback until the work is done, others say no until it is settled. The expert report and the quotes count for more than your income.
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.