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Rolling debts into the mortgage in Côte-Nord: they are named in the offer and paid by the notary. What it takes for the lower rate to actually help.
It all comes down to your ratios once the debts are paid off, not today’s. A tax debt weighs more than a credit card: Revenu Québec and the CRA can register a claim on the property, and most lenders require it to be paid out of the refinancing.
A list of your debts with exact balances and payments, your latest mortgage statements, your notices of assessment. If a tax debt is involved, ask for the official statement of account, the only figure the lender will work from.
In general you can refinance up to 80% of the property’s value, minus what you still owe. On a $500,000 home with $250,000 outstanding, that’s roughly $150,000, before you factor in the penalty for breaking the current term.
Count the penalty, legal fees, appraisal and new-loan costs first. Only then does a comparison of payments mean anything.
The debts paid off at closing are named one by one in the offer and paid directly by the notary. That’s what stops the lower rate from becoming a fresh loan somewhere else.
A lower payment and a lower total cost are two different things. Stretching the amortization eases the monthly budget and adds years of interest. Look at both numbers before you sign anything.
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 yes, but not always with your cash. Paying down a card improves your ratios. Emptying your account to do it weakens the down payment. You have to run both numbers at the same time.
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.