Mortgage Payment Deferrals

We understand that the COVID-19 outbreak is taking a toll on families across the country with many parents being out of work or quarantined. As an industry built on homeowners, many of our major lenders have pulled together to provide you beneficial options during this time and help alleviate some of the financial stress.

Depending on your lender, there may be options available to you during this time such as:

• Deferral of payments
• Re-amortization of the loan
• Capitalization of outstanding interest & costs
• Special payment arrangements

**Please be mindful that there are many people who will be looking for relief.  Consequently the call centres may get overlaoded and wait times may be longer than usual. (Many lenders have customer service emails posted on their websites which may be a viable alternative to calling) These measures are specifically for people who are experienceing financial hardship as a result of the current siuation.

The Big Banks

Big banks including Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD), Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank), Bank of Montreal (BMO), Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) and National Bank of Canada have opted to provide coordinated relief for their customers.

These banks will be working with personal and small business clients to cope with the economic fallout of the virus. Effective immediately, all six are introducing mortgage payment deferrals of up to six (6) months and are also offering relief on other credit products for those families who are facing hardship during this situation.

Mortgage Insurers

In addition to the big banks, mortgage insurers including CMHC, Genworth & Canada Guaranty are working to help homeowners who have been financially impacted by the COVID-19 outbreak. Starting now, they have increased their flexibility and are allowing payment deferral of up to 6 months for home-owners who, primarily but not exclusively, purchased with less than 20% down.

GENWORTH CANADA

Genworth Canada released a statement on March 16, 2020 outlining their Homeowner Assistance Program (HOAP), which is designed to assist Genworth Canada-insured homeowners who experience sudden financial setbacks that could temporarily impact their ability to meet their mortgage obligations. Borrowers who qualify under the lender’s internal guidelines and Genworth’s Homeowner Assistance Program will receive up to six (6) months of relief allowing borrowers some time to recover and focus on what’s important.

CANADIAN MORTGAGE AND HOUSING CORPORATION (CMHC)

Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) is offering tools that can assist homeowners who may be experiencing financial difficulty. Their default management tools include: payment deferral, loan re-amortization, capitalization of outstanding interest arrears and other eligible expenses and special payment arrangements.

CMHC also provides mortgage professionals with tools and the flexibility to make timely decisions when working with you to find a solution to your unique financial situation, including:

• Converting a variable interest rate mortgage to a fixed interest rate mortgage in order to protect you from a sudden interest rate increase, should one occur.
• Offering a temporary short-term payment deferral. Your mortgage professional may be prepared to offer greater payment flexibilities, particularly if previous lump-sum prepayments have been made, or if you have previously chosen an accelerated payment schedule.
• Extending the original repayment period (amortization) in order to lower your monthly mortgage payments.
• Adding any missed payments (arrears) to the mortgage balance and spreading them over the remaining mortgage repayment period.
• Offering a special payment arrangement unique to your particular financial situation.

CANADA GUARANTY

In addition to Genworth Canada and CMHC, Canada Guaranty is also doing their part to support homeowners during this difficult time. Per their statement released on March 16, 2020 they noted with their Homeownership Solutions Program, lenders currently have the ability to capitalize up to four (4) monthly mortgage payments.

However, to assist eligible homeowners as they navigate through these challenging circumstances, Canada Guaranty is prepared to extend this program option to allow the capitalization of up to a maximum of six (6) monthly payments. This is assuming the original insured loan amount is not exceeded, request for capitalization is received before September 13, 2020 and that the lender confirms the capitalization is being applied reasonably to help mitigate short-term financial difficulty resulting from COVID-19.

Lender Contact Information

During this time, it is best to discuss your mortgage with your mortgage broker or lender should you have any financial concerns surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak. Please be advised, there may be longer than normal wait times for calls during this situation and to expect at least 20-30 minutes for a representative. Be sure to have your mortgage number available to ensure smoother service and remember to be kind!

Here are some direct contact numbers for various lenders across the country: