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HSR Real Estate

GTA Mortgage Underwriting

Mortgage Calculator

Monthly payment ---
Home price
$
$200K$3M
Down payment
%
5%50%

CMHC insurance required below 20% down. Homes over $1.5M require 20% minimum.

Interest rate
%
0.5%12%
Amortization
yr
5 yr30 yr

Monthly payment

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enter a price to calculate

  • Mortgage principal---
  • CMHC premium---
  • Total interest paid---
  • Total cost---

Payment frequency

Monthly---
Bi-weekly---
Bi-weekly accelerated---

Estimates only. Property tax assumes a GTA average of 0.7% of value; heat $200/mo. Land transfer tax is calculated on gross purchase price. Figures are illustrative and not financial, legal, or tax advice. Confirm with a licensed mortgage professional and a real estate lawyer.

CMHC mortgage insurance

When your down payment is less than 20%, mortgage default insurance is required. The premium is added to your mortgage and amortized. Homes over $1,500,000 are not eligible.

Down paymentPremium rate
5% to 9.99%4.00%
10% to 14.99%3.10%
15% to 19.99%2.80%
20% or moreNone

Ontario land transfer tax

Purchase priceMarginal rate
First $55,0000.50%
$55,001 to $250,0001.00%
$250,001 to $400,0001.50%
$400,001 to $2,000,0002.00%
Over $2,000,0002.50%

Toronto's municipal LTT mirrors these brackets and is charged in addition. First-time buyers receive rebates up to $4,000 (Ontario) and $4,475 (Toronto).

The mortgage stress test

Lenders qualify you at the greater of your contracted rate plus 2%, or 5.25%. At a 5.25% contract rate, your qualifying rate is 7.25%. At 4.0%, the qualifying rate is 6.0%.

GDS and TDS ratios

GDS (Gross Debt Service) is monthly housing costs divided by gross monthly income; lenders cap this at 39%. TDS (Total Debt Service) adds all other monthly debt payments; maximum is 44%.

PITH explained

Principal + Interest + property Tax + Heat. Lenders calculate GDS as PITH (plus 50% of any condo fee) divided by gross monthly income. Every line in the Qualify tab feeds this formula.

Additional closing costs

Budget roughly 1.5 to 4% of purchase price for closing costs on top of your down payment. The biggest variable is land transfer tax, which scales with price and doubles in Toronto.

Ready to move forward?

Get pre-approved by a GTA mortgage professional.

The HSR Team connects buyers with trusted GTA mortgage brokers who can run your actual numbers, issue a pre-approval, and help you lock in the right rate before you start shopping.