Banks underwrite paperwork. Private lenders underwrite your home equity.
Private-lender LTV caps shift with the housing market. Lenders that approved 80% LTV last year are quoting 75% on some property types today.
Your file is priced against today's appraisal value, today's lender appetite, and today's LTV caps. Locking in a quote now costs nothing and tells you exactly what's available.
A private mortgage is a loan secured against your home, funded by a private lender or MIC (mortgage investment corporation) instead of a bank. Banks underwrite paperwork (credit score, T4s, debt ratios). Private lenders underwrite equity. The house itself. That's why they say yes when banks say no.
Yes. This is most of what private lenders do. Bruised credit, collections, active consumer proposals, even discharged bankruptcies do not automatically disqualify you if you have sufficient equity. There's no minimum credit score for most private mortgage programs.
Most equity lenders allow up to 80% combined loan-to-value (existing mortgage + new equity loan ÷ home value). Some lenders go to 85% case-by-case. Example: an $800,000 home with a $400,000 first mortgage may unlock up to ~$240,000 through a home equity loan.
Not unless you stop paying. A HELOC is secured against your home, the same as your first mortgage, which is why the rate is so much lower than unsecured options. Here's the lender's incentive: foreclosing on a homeowner costs them legal fees, lost interest, and reputational damage, often more than they'd recover. Real-world default rates on equity-secured Canadian lending sit well under 1%. Our job up front is to structure a payment you can actually afford based on your real cash flow, so default never becomes the conversation. If circumstances change later, lenders almost always work with borrowers on temporary adjustments before any legal step.
No. Most private mortgages are 1–2 year terms, a bridge to a better situation. The plan is usually: (1) use the funds to clear the immediate problem (CRA, debt, power of sale), (2) rebuild credit or stabilize income, (3) refinance back to a bank or B-lender rate at renewal. We map that exit on day one.
Approval typically within 24 hours. Funding usually 7-10 business days from approval, depending on appraisal and legal coordination. We've closed urgent power-of-sale files in under 7. We will not lie to you about timing. We tell you the realistic window the moment we look at your file.
Detached, semi-detached, townhouses, condos, multi-unit residential (up to 4 units), and in many cases commercial or mixed-use properties with sufficient equity. Rural and unusual properties get assessed case-by-case.
