Let’s Talk Calculators!

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Math isn’t for everyone but that’s why we have been blessed with digital and physical machines to help us crunch the complicated numbers. If you are looking to take out a mortgage sometime soon, know what you’ll be signing up for with our mortgage payment calculator. Understanding your mortgage payments is an important part of getting a mortgage that you can afford to service long term.

If you’re purchasing a home, our payment calculator allows you to test down payment and amortization scenarios, and compare variable and fixed mortgage rates. It also calculates your mortgage default insurance premiums and land transfer tax.

Why use a mortgage calculator?

The most relevant number for your mortgage will be your regular repayments. After all, your mortgage payments are the amount that you’ll need to take from your pay cheque each month to keep your mortgage under control.

Using a mortgage payment calculator takes the guess work out of your mortgage payments. Our calculator lets you understand how much you’ll need to pay each month for any size of mortgage, regardless of rate. This means you can compare homes and mortgage products stress-free, all the while knowing exactly how much you’ll owe in each scenario.

Calculating payments

Calculating mortgage payments used to be difficult, but calculators make it much easier. Ours gives you everything you need to test different scenarios, and help you decide what mortgage is right for you.

The 3 numbers

There are several factors that go into estimating how much your regular mortgage payments will be. These 3 numbers are particularly important:

1. The total mortgage amount: the price of your new home, minus the down payment, plus mortgage insurance, if applicable.

2. The amortization period: the total life of your mortgage, and the number of years the mortgage payments will be spread across.

3. The mortgage rate: This is the rate of interest you pay on your mortgage.

How to use the calculator?

Start by entering the purchase price, select an amortization period and mortgage rate. The calculator shows the best rates available in your province, but you can also add a different rate. The calculator will then show you what your mortgage payments will be.

By default, the mortgage payment calculator will show four different monthly payments, depending on the size of your down payment. It will automatically calculate the cost of CMHC insurance. You can change the size of your down payment and the payment frequency to see how your regular payment will be affected

Our calculator also shows you what the land transfer tax will be, and approximately how much cash you’ll need for closing costs. You can also use the calculator to estimate total monthly expenses, see what your payments would be if mortgage rates go up, and show what your outstanding balance will be over time.

If you’re buying a new home, it’s a good idea to use the calculator to determine what you can afford before you start looking at real estate listings. If you’re renewing or refinancing and know the total amount of the mortgage, use the “Renewal or Refinance” tab to estimate mortgage payments without accounting for a down payment.

Lowering your mortgage payments

You can reduce the purchase price, make a bigger down payment, extend the amortization period, or find a lower mortgage rate. Use the calculator to see what your payment would be in different scenarios.

Keep in mind that if your down payment is less than 20%, your maximum amortization period is 25 years. As for finding a lower mortgage rate, it’s a good idea to speak to a mortgage broker for assistance.

Is our mortgage payment calculator free?

Yes! In fact, all of our calculators, articles, and rate comparison tables are free.

CMHC Insurance?

It protects lenders from mortgages that default. CMHC insurance is mandatory for all mortgages in Canada with down payments of less than 20% (high-ratio mortgages). This is an additional cost to you, and is calculated as a percentage of your total mortgage amount.

What is an amortization schedule?

An amortization schedule shows your monthly payments over time and also indicates the portion of each payment paying down your principal vs. interest. The maximum amortization in Canada is 25 years on down payments less than 20%. The maximum amortization period for all mortgages is 35 years.

Though your amortization may be 25 years, your term will be much shorter. With the most common term in Canada being 5 years, your amortization will be up for renewal before your mortgage is paid off, which is why our amortization schedule shows you the balance of your mortgage at the end of your term.