Mortgage Broker St. John's, NL
Quietly, a better mortgage.
Mortgage advice for St. John's buyers, movers and owners renewing: patient explanations, offers from many lenders side by side, and a plan that fits the life you live in your home.
Your broker
Twenty-five years, planned with care.
Before becoming a mortgage broker I spent a decade in credit analysis for a national lender, so I know how lenders read a file. Now I work for you: I prepare your file so it reads clearly, compare offers from many lenders, and stay with you through renewals for as long as you own the home.
A mortgage is with you for twenty-five years. It should be chosen with the same care as the home.
- Broker
- Arjun Mehta
- Licence
- NL-209331
- Brokerage
- Harbourlight Mortgage Ltd.
- Speaks
- Englishहिन्दी
- 12
- Years in St. John's lending
- Source: Broker’s own record, sample
- 460+
- Mortgages arranged
- Source: Broker’s own records, sample
- 28+
- Lenders and credit unions compared
- Source: Brokerage lender list, sample
How I can help
-
Buying your first home
Your budget set out plainly, a pre-approval you can rely on and every closing cost known before you make an offer.
-
Moving up
The sale and the purchase timed together, bridge financing if you need it, and everyone working to the same dates.
-
Renewing
Months before your term ends, your lender’s offer laid beside what other lenders would give you, so you choose calmly.
-
Refinancing
Penalty, legal costs and monthly savings in one place, so you can see whether using your equity is worth it.
Your mortgage, year by year
The life of a mortgage
The example on this page, followed for 25 years at 4.69%: what is still owed, what has gone to interest and what is already repaid. Scroll to move through the years.
- Year 1 Most of each payment goes to interest; the balance moves slowly.
- Year 5 Your first renewal: the moment to compare lenders again.
- Year 11 From here, each year repays more of the balance than it pays in interest.
- Year 25 The last payment: the home is entirely yours.
Indicative: assumes the rate stays at 4.69% for the whole amortization; in practice you renew every few years at the rates of the day. Before any mortgage insurance.
The life of a mortgage 4.69%
Year 25
Still owed $0
- Interest paid
- $235,365
- Balance repaid
- $340,000
- Monthly payment
- $1,918
Run the numbers
Your payment, the mortgage insurance, the interest over the years and what faster payments would save. Change anything; the figures follow.
$1,918
per monthly payment
- Mortgage amount
- $340,000
- Mortgage insurance
- Not required with 20% or more down
- Sales tax on the premium, paid at closing
- Total interest
- $235,365
- Total paid
- $575,365
- Number of payments
- 300
- Paid off in
- 25 years
With accelerated bi-weekly payments you would save $36,633 in interest and finish 3 years 5 months sooner.
Year-by-year schedule
| Year | Interest | Principal | Balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $15,637 | $7,378 | $332,622 |
| 2 | $15,287 | $7,728 | $324,894 |
| 3 | $14,920 | $8,095 | $316,799 |
| 4 | $14,536 | $8,479 | $308,320 |
| 5 | $14,133 | $8,881 | $299,439 |
| 6 | $13,712 | $9,303 | $290,136 |
| 7 | $13,271 | $9,744 | $280,392 |
| 8 | $12,808 | $10,206 | $270,186 |
| 9 | $12,324 | $10,691 | $259,495 |
| 10 | $11,817 | $11,198 | $248,297 |
| 11 | $11,285 | $11,729 | $236,568 |
| 12 | $10,729 | $12,286 | $224,282 |
| 13 | $10,146 | $12,869 | $211,413 |
| 14 | $9,535 | $13,479 | $197,933 |
| 15 | $8,896 | $14,119 | $183,814 |
| 16 | $8,226 | $14,789 | $169,025 |
| 17 | $7,524 | $15,491 | $153,534 |
| 18 | $6,789 | $16,226 | $137,309 |
| 19 | $6,019 | $16,996 | $120,313 |
| 20 | $5,212 | $17,802 | $102,511 |
| 21 | $4,368 | $18,647 | $83,864 |
| 22 | $3,483 | $19,532 | $64,332 |
| 23 | $2,556 | $20,458 | $43,874 |
| 24 | $1,585 | $21,429 | $22,444 |
| 25 | $569 | $22,444 | $0 |
How this is worked out
- Canadian fixed rates compound twice a year, so the rate per payment is a little lower than the annual rate divided by the number of payments.
- Minimum down payment: 5% of the first $500,000 and 10% of the part up to $1.5 million. From $1.5 million, 20%.
- With less than 20% down, mortgage default insurance is required and its premium is added to the mortgage: 2.80% to 4.00% of the loan depending on the down payment, plus 0.20 points over 25 years.
- Accelerated payments are half or a quarter of the monthly payment, paid every two weeks or every week, which adds about one monthly payment a year.
Indicative, not a lender decision or a pre-approval. Assumes the same rate for the whole amortization; rates change at renewal.
Which kind of mortgage fits you?
Choose a type to see how it behaves. Your broker will compare real offers for your situation.
The rate and the payment stay the same for the whole term.
- Your payment
- Stays the same for the term, often five years.
- If rates change
- Nothing changes until renewal.
- Breaking early
- The penalty is usually the greater of three months’ interest or an interest rate differential, which can be large.
- Suits you if
- You want a predictable budget and expect to keep the mortgage for the term.
The rate moves with the lender’s prime rate; the payment often stays the same.
- Your payment
- Usually fixed; more or less of it goes to principal as prime moves.
- If rates change
- Rising rates mean slower repayment, and payments can be reset if rates rise far enough.
- Breaking early
- The penalty is usually three months’ interest.
- Suits you if
- You can live with change, or may sell or refinance before the term ends.
Like variable, but the payment itself changes whenever prime changes.
- Your payment
- Goes up or down with the prime rate.
- If rates change
- You feel it in your next payment; your repayment schedule stays on track.
- Breaking early
- The penalty is usually three months’ interest.
- Suits you if
- Your budget has room to absorb payment changes.
A credit line secured by your home that you draw on and repay as you need.
- Your payment
- Can be interest only on what you have used.
- How much
- In Canada the revolving part is limited to 65% of the home’s value, and 80% together with a mortgage.
- The rate
- Usually prime plus a margin, so it moves with prime.
- Suits you if
- You want flexible access for renovations or investments and a plan to repay.
An open mortgage can be paid off anytime; a closed one costs less but limits prepayment.
- Open
- Repay any amount at any time without a penalty, at a higher rate.
- Closed
- A lower rate, with yearly prepayment limits set by the lender and a penalty to break.
- Often used
- Open for a short time before a sale or a lump sum; closed for most homeowners.
- Suits you if
- You know exactly when you will pay a large amount down.
General information, not advice. Terms differ between lenders.
What clients say
Arjun explained every line of our mortgage and never rushed us. We bought our first home feeling completely sure of the numbers.
He lined up our bridge financing so smoothly that the move felt easy. Calm, precise and always reachable.
Our renewal looked routine. Arjun found us a better offer and walked us through why it was better.
Questions clients ask
When should we first talk?
Before you start viewing homes, ideally. Knowing your budget early makes every later step calmer.
How much do I need for a down payment?
At least 5% on the first $500,000 of the price and 10% on the part above it, up to $1.5 million. Under 20% down, the mortgage needs default insurance.
Can’t I just sign my lender’s renewal letter?
You can, and sometimes it is the right choice. Comparing first takes a few weeks if you start early, and the first offer is often not the only one.
What do you charge?
On most residential mortgages there is no fee to you. If a file ever needs one, you will see it in writing before anything is signed.
Send your documents securely
Upload everything from your phone or computer. It goes straight to Arjun’s secure document storage in Canada, with a checklist made for your situation.
- Tell us a little about you and your plans
- See exactly which documents your situation needs
- Upload them, and you’re done
Sample site: this opens a sample upload page in a new tab. On a live site, it opens the broker’s own.
- No account to create
- Works on your phone
- Stored in Canada
Begin with a calm conversation
Thirty minutes to talk through where you are and where you would like to be. You will leave with a clear next step.