Mortgage Qualifier

The first step in buying a house is determining your budget. This calculator steps you through the process of finding out how much you can borrow. Fill in the entry fields and click on the payment schedule button to see a complete amortization schedule of your mortgage payments.


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Definitions

Annual income
Your gross annual income. For married couples this is your total combined gross annual income.

Purchase price
The price of the home you wish to purchase. This is the actual price you pay, not including any closing costs.

Total monthly payment
Total monthly payment that you can qualify for. This is the total of principal, interest, taxes and heat paid each month.

Cash on hand
Cash you have for the down payment and all closing costs.

Interest rate
The current interest rate you can receive on your mortgage.

Amortization in years
The number of years over which you will repay this mortgage.

Annual property taxes
The annual property tax paid on the home you are purchasing.

Monthly car payment(s)
Total monthly payment for your car loan(s).

Credit card payments
Total monthly minimum payments for your credit cards.

Other loan payments
Any other installment loan payments, such as student loans or unsecured loans.

Total closing costs
Total up front costs to close your loan. This is the total of your CMHC premium, transfer tax, GST and other closing costs.

Other closing costs
Estimate of all other closing costs for this loan. This should include filing fees, appraiser fees and any other misc. fees paid.

CMHC Premium
Mortgage insurance is paid to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). This includes all loans secured with less than 25% down and depending on your financial institution, with as much as 35% down. This calculator assumes that financial institutions will not charge any CMHC premium if you have more than a 25% downpayment. This calculator assumes that your CMHC premium can be financed by your mortgage, which can greatly reduce the amount of upfront money that is required to purchase a home. The CMHC premium is calculated as:

CMHC Insurance Premium Rates:
Loan Size
(% of property value)
Rate (as a % of loan)
Up to and including 65% (over 35% down payment)
0.5%
Up to and including 75% (25% to 34.99% down payment)
0.65%
Up to and including 80% (20% to 24.99% down payment)
1.00%
Up to and including 85% (15% to 19.99% down payment)
1.75%
Up to and including 90% (10% to 14.99% down payment)
2.00%
Up to and including 95% (5% to 9.99% down payment)
3.25%
Up to and including 95% Flex Down* (5% to 9.99% down payment)
3.40%

GDSR: Gross Debt Service Ratio
Compares the total cost of your monthly mortgage payment, taxes and heating to your gross monthly (pre-tax) income from all sources. The general rule is that these monthly payments should not exceed 32% of your gross income.

TDSR: Total Debt Service Ratio
Examines the relationship between all monthly debts (i.e. mortgage payments, property taxes, cars, credit cards, other loans and obligations, etc.) and your gross monthly income. The general rule is that these total monthly payments should not exceed 40% of your income.

Qualify amount
Shown as "Total monthly payment." This is the total amount you qualify for per month. This amount is the total of "Principal, Interest, Tax and Heat" for your home.