On Friday, CMHC (Canadian Mortgage & Housing Corporation) announced that it will be increasing its mortgage insurance premiums for homeowners and 1-4 unit rental properties premium effective May 1, 2014.
Homebuyers is Canada are required by law to purchase mortgage insurance when they put less than 20% down payment on the purchase price of the home. The homeowner is required to pay for the insurance in case they default on their mortgage and it is a protection for the lender. The increase to the premium will be an average of about 15% more to insure mortgages. This premium is added to the mortgage amount and it is paid throughout the life of the mortgage (amortization period). The increase in premium will affect any purchases that occur on or after May 1, 2014.
There majority of the insurance is provided by CMHC and there are two private insurers to include Genworth Financial and Canada Guarantee. Genworth Financial followed suit by increasing its’ premiums on Friday and most likely Canada Guarantee will do the same.
Prior to the announcement, the premium ranged between 0.5% to 2.75%. As of May 1st, the premiums will range from 0.6% to 3.15%. The premiums charged depend on the amount of the down payment. With a 5% down payment the new premium will be 3.15% and 2.40% for a 10% down payment.
For example, prior to the announcement with a $400,000 home purchase and a 5% down payment the insurance premium would be $10,450. After May 1st, the premium would increase by $1,520 which would translate to $7.29 more per month with a 25 year amortization and a 5 year, fixed rate of 3.09%.
To read more about the CMHC announcement
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