Latest Mortgage Rates

Mortgage guides

Explanations that sit next to the rate tables: how to read a posted rate, how reported rates are aggregated, and which comparison to open before you renew or buy. Andrew writes these pages. The numbers in a comparison come from the daily scrape or from the reported-rate file, and the page says which.

In-depth guides

2026 mortgage renewal playbook

The 2021 five-year terms come due in 2026. Timeline, negotiation, switching, and blend-and-extend, with the stress-test exemption written out.

The 2027 renewal wave

Five-year terms from 2022 mature in 2027. January's borrowers and December's borrowers are not facing the same payment.

Switching lenders at renewal

Discharge, legal, and appraisal costs, the straight-switch exemption from the set stress-test rate, and the papers to have ready before maturity.

Renewal, refinance, or HELOC

Same house, three different loans: what each one changes, what it costs, and which test you have to pass.

Porting a mortgage

Same lender, remaining term, and a blend if you need more money. The day-count between closings is in the contract, and it is not the same at every bank.

Blend-and-extend vs break vs wait

The month-weighted formula, a worked example against waiting and against a three-month penalty, and the costs a blend hides.

Mortgage rate holds

RBC and TD publish 120-day fixed holds and BMO publishes 130. A hold is honoured only if you fund in time and still qualify, and a renewal statement is a shorter, different promise.

How prepayment penalties are calculated

Three months' interest versus the IRD, the posted-rate method versus a discounted comparison rate, and the moves that shrink the bill.

Fixed vs variable in 2026

The spread in this site's rate file, a break-even if prime rises, and the difference between a payment that moves and a payment that does not.

Should you lock in a variable rate?

The conversion is usually into a fixed term at least as long as the time left, at the rate the lender offers that day. The spread in the rate file is the break-even, not a forecast.

Posted vs discounted rates

Why the shelf rate exists, how a discount is applied, and how that same discount comes back in a prepayment penalty.

Bank of Canada rate and your mortgage

Overnight rate, prime, variable versus adjustable payments, trigger rates, and why a fixed quote can move when the Bank holds.

Big 5 banks compared

Posted and special 5-year rates from the scrape, reported discounts only where the sample is large enough, and the penalty, hold, and HELOC terms each bank publishes.

Big banks, monolines, and credit unions

Rates, penalties, portability, service, and who actually regulates the lender. Deposit insurance is about savings, not the loan.

HELOC rates in Canada

Prime plus a margin, a revolving cap at 65% of value, and a combined cap at 80%. The margin is in the commitment unless the lender actually posts it.

First-time home buyer programs

FHSA, the Home Buyers' Plan, the new-home GST/HST rebate, provincial transfer taxes, and who can still get a 30-year insured amortization.

Closing costs by province

Land transfer tax, Toronto's municipal tax, and land-titles fees on a $500,000 and an $800,000 home, plus the rebates and the new-build GST.

CMHC mortgage insurance

Premium tiers, the down-payment formula, the price cap under $1.5 million, provincial tax, and why 20% down is not always the cheaper loan.

Mortgage stress test, explained

The qualifying rate, the 39% and 44% debt ratios, worked files at three incomes, and the renewals that do not re-run the test.

30-year amortizations

Who qualifies for an insured 30-year amortization, the payment and the stress test, and what the extra interest costs on a worked example.

Start here

How much below posted can you negotiate?

Place a bank’s posted rate next to rates self-reported by Canadian borrowers online, then walk through a renewal conversation.

Real mortgage rates

Medians, distributions, and the gap versus posted rates. The figures are unverified reports, not offers.

Below-the-Line Mortgage Rate Report: October 2026

As of October 18, 2026, the median 5-year variable rate self-reported by Canadian borrowers online is 3.55% (N = 202) and the median 5-year fixed rate is 4.30% (N = 74). 98% of 5-year variable reports sit below the Big-5 posted median.

Compare mortgages

Fixed versus variable, insured versus uninsured, and side-by-side lender pairs. Live percentages come from the daily rate file.

Mortgage glossary

Short definitions for the terms that show up in a commitment: amortization, stress test, IRD, loan-to-value, and the rest.

Comparisons

Also on the site