June 1, 2011
Should I wait for my mortgage to mature?
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“If you live in Canada, your current mortgage lender is obligated to send you a renewal statement at least 21 days before the end of your mortgage term.
Be sure to give yourself more than 21 days to explore your mortgage renewal.
Find your mortgage contract or your latest annual mortgage statement to find out what your exact renewal date is then mark your calendar to begin looking about 30 – 45 days before your renewal date.
I suppose that lenders wait this late to send you a renewal notice so that you have little time to negotiate or shop around for a better mortgage rate. When you receive your renewal, you will probably be very surprised to see that the rates offered are not the lowest or most competitive rates in the market. There are some mortgage lenders, on the market, that will pay most or all of the costs associated with a ‘switch’ but note they will not pay any “mortgage penalties” if you break the mortgage term prematurely.”