NorthCalc

Mortgage Affordability Calculator 2026

The most you could pay for a home under Canada’s stress test and CMHC limits.

2026 rates · verified Oct 22–28, 2026

Your details

%

Monthly: car loans, credit cards, other loans

Insurance, mortgage and payment for one home with your down payment

Province, property tax, heat, condo

Monthly estimate

Monthly

Needed for a 30-year insured mortgage

Only with less than 20% down

You could afford up to

Limited by the 39% housing cost limit (GDS)

Down payment$50,000
Mortgage insurance$20,064.48
Mortgage$521,676.48
Monthly payment at 4.5%$2,887.34
Stress test payment at 6.5%$3,494.31
Property tax$305.68/month
GDS (limit 39%)39%
TDS (limit 44%)42%

Your inputs

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How this is calculated

  1. Stress test rate: the greater of your rate + 2% or 5.25%, set by OSFI for uninsured mortgages and applied by CMHC to insured ones.
  2. Minimum down payment: 5% of the first $500,000 and 10% of the rest under $1,500,000; 20% from $1,500,000.
  3. Mortgage insurance: with less than 20% down, CMHC’s premium for your loan-to-value is added to the mortgage (plus 0.2% over 25 years). If you choose to pay it in cash at closing instead, the mortgage and the stress test use the loan alone.
  4. Payment: Canadian fixed-rate mortgages are quoted with interest compounded semi-annually; the Interest Act (s. 6) requires blended-payment mortgages to state their rate calculated yearly or half-yearly. So the monthly rate is (1 + rate ÷ 2)1/6 − 1, and payment = mortgage × i ÷ (1 − (1 + i)−months).
  5. Debt limits: stress-test payment + property tax + heating + half of condo fees must be at most 39% of gross monthly income (GDS); adding other debt payments, at most 44% (TDS).
  6. Result: the highest price, to the dollar, that passes all of these.

CMHC mortgage insurance premiums

Loan-to-valuePremium
Up to 65%0.6%
65.01% to 75%1.7%
75.01% to 80%2.4%
80.01% to 85%2.8%
85.01% to 90%3.1%
90.01% to 95%4%

On the total loan. Amortization over 25 years adds 0.2%. Sagen and Canada Guaranty set their own premiums.

Worked example

A household earning $120,000 a year with $50,000 saved, a 4.5% five-year fixed rate, $300 a month of other debt, Calgary property tax and $100 a month for heat:

Stress test rate6.5%
Highest price$551,612
Minimum down payment at that price$30,161.20
CMHC premium (4% of $501,612)$20,064.48
Mortgage$521,676.48
Payment at 4.5%$2,887.34
Payment at 6.5% (what the lender tests)$3,494.31
GDS / TDS39% / 42%

Limited by the 39% housing cost limit (GDS). The actual payment is $606.97 a month less than the stress-test payment, which is the cushion the test builds in.

Worked example: the stress test, step by step

You want a $625,000 home in Calgary with 20% ($125,000) down, so you need a $500,000 mortgage over 25 years. The lender offers 4.5%, but it has to check that you could pay at a higher rate:

Stress-test rate: the greater of 4.5% + 2% and 5.25%6.5%
Payment at 4.5% (what you’d pay)$2,767.36 a month
Payment at 6.5% (what the lender tests)$3,349.12 a month
Calgary property tax: 6.6499 mills on $625,000 = $4,156.19 a year, ÷ 12$346.35 a month
Heating (your estimate)$100.00 a month
Housing costs at 6.5%$3,795.47 a month
Income needed: $3,795.47 × 12 ÷ 39% (GDS)$116,784 a year

At the 4.5% you’d actually pay, the same home costs $3,213.71 a month, which a $98,884 income would cover. The stress test asks for $17,900 more income than that: the room you’d need if rates were 2 points higher when you renew. With 20% down there’s no mortgage insurance, but the test still applies. Other debts would also have to fit under the 44% TDS limit.

What this calculator assumes

Frequently asked questions

What is the mortgage stress test in 2026?

Lenders must check that you could afford your payments at the greater of your contract rate plus 2% or 5.25%. At a 4.5% rate you qualify at 6.5%: on a $400,000 mortgage over 25 years that’s $2,679.30 a month instead of $2,213.89. It applies to insured and uninsured mortgages.

What is the minimum down payment in Canada?

5% of the first $500,000 of the price and 10% of the part above that, for homes under $1,500,000. A $700,000 home needs $45,000. At $1,500,000 and above, you need 20% down because mortgage insurance isn’t available.

How much is CMHC insurance?

With less than 20% down, the premium is 2.8% to 4% of the loan, depending on how much you borrow compared with the price. With 5% down it’s 4%, so a $475,000 loan has a $19,000 premium, normally added to the mortgage. Amortizations over 25 years add 0.2%.

Can I pay the CMHC premium in cash instead of adding it to the mortgage?

Yes. Most buyers add it to the mortgage, which spreads it over the amortization but means paying interest on it: on a $494,000 mortgage at 4.5% over 25 years, the $19,000 premium adds $105.16 a month. Paying it in cash avoids that, but it’s on top of your down payment and doesn’t count toward it. Choose “Pay it in cash at closing” under Province, property tax, heat, condo to see the difference.

Who can get a 30-year insured mortgage?

First-time home buyers and anyone buying a newly built home. You’ve never bought a home in Canada, or you haven’t lived in a home you or your current spouse or partner owned this year or in the previous four calendar years. A recent separation (90 days or more, starting in that period) can also count. Otherwise insured mortgages are limited to 25 years.

What are GDS and TDS?

Gross debt service (GDS) is your mortgage payment, property tax, heating and half of any condo fees as a share of gross income: CMHC’s limit is 39%. Total debt service (TDS) adds car loans, credit cards and other debts: the limit is 44%. Both use the payment at the stress-test rate.

Do I have to pass the stress test again when I renew?

Not for a straight switch. OSFI doesn’t expect lenders to apply the stress test when you move an uninsured mortgage to another federally regulated lender at renewal without borrowing more or extending the amortization. If you borrow more or refinance, expect to qualify again.

Is there tax on mortgage insurance?

In Ontario (8%), Quebec (9%, rising to 9.975% for premiums paid from January 1, 2027) and Saskatchewan (6%), provincial sales tax applies to the premium. It’s paid when you close and can’t be added to the mortgage. Other provinces don’t tax it: Manitoba stopped taxing mortgage insurance for contracts starting after June 30, 2020.

Rates for tax year 2026, verified to · Page updated

Sources

Federal

Provincial and territorial

Municipal