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Case studies

Mortgage case studies: files banks say no to, and how they can be structured.

Every scenario here is an illustrative example, not a real client file. They are composites showing how situations like these can be structured; rates shown are dated assumptions, not current offers. See today’s rates on our live board.

Worked examples of Canadian mortgage situations that often need more than a single bank’s answer: self-employed income, bruised credit, no Canadian credit history, CRA debt, and investment files, with the structure, the rules behind it, and the numbers.

Self-employed Mississauga, ON

Example: how a $760K purchase could be structured for a self-employed buyer a bank declined

An illustrative incorporated consultant whose personal tax return understates her business's real income is declined by her bank; documenting business-for-self income can open A-lender pricing.

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Bruised credit Scarborough, ON

Example: buying a home 14 months after a completed consumer proposal, using a B-lender

An illustrative couple who completed a consumer proposal 14 months earlier buys before the usual two-year A-lender wait, using a B-lender term and an exit plan to A pricing.

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Newcomer North York, ON

Example: how a newcomer with no Canadian credit history could buy a condo with the minimum down payment

An illustrative permanent resident with no Canadian credit history buys a $620K condo through an insured newcomer program, alternative credit references, and the minimum down payment.

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Debt consolidation Brampton, ON

Example: consolidating $80K of high-interest debt with a refinance, and what it does to monthly cashflow

An illustrative homeowner carrying 19-22% revolving debt uses home equity to consolidate $80,000 at an assumed 5.49% mortgage rate, cutting monthly obligations by roughly $1,900.

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CRA / tax debt Ottawa, ON

Example: using home equity to clear $65K of CRA tax debt before a lien is registered

An illustrative self-employed contractor with $65,000 in CRA arrears uses home equity to pay the balance in full before a lien is registered, then plans a path back to A-lender pricing.

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Investment Hamilton, ON

Example: using home equity to buy a first rental property (a $700K duplex)

An illustrative homeowner taps equity in their principal residence for the down payment and uses a rental-friendly lender to buy a duplex that carries itself.

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Consumer proposal Barrie, ON

Example: buying a home during an active consumer proposal with a specialty B-lender

An illustrative single-income buyer, 18 months into an active consumer proposal and current on payments, buys through a specialty B-lender rather than waiting for the proposal to be completed.

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Consumer proposal London, ON

Example: refinancing after a completed consumer proposal to consolidate debt and cut the monthly payment

Twenty months after completing a proposal, an illustrative homeowner refinances with a B-lender to roll high-interest credit-card debt into the mortgage and free up monthly cashflow.

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Consumer proposal Whitby, ON

Example: paying off a consumer proposal early with home equity

One year into a five-year proposal, an illustrative homeowner with strong equity borrows against it to pay the proposal out in full, completing it early and shortening the road back to prime pricing.

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Consumer proposal Vaughan, ON

Example: self-employed after a consumer proposal, and how a purchase could still be funded

An illustrative incorporated contractor with written-down income, 16 months after completing a proposal and declined twice, buys through a B-lender that accepts both self-employed income and a recent proposal.

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CRA debt Ottawa, ON

Example: clearing a registered CRA lien with a private second mortgage

An illustrative homeowner whose income-tax and HST arrears have escalated to a registered CRA lien is declined by banks; a private second mortgage pays CRA, and the lien is discharged from title.

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CRA debt Vaughan, ON

Example: self-employed with HST arrears, refinancing before a lien to keep A-lender pricing

An illustrative incorporated contractor with HST arrears building but no lien yet refinances through an A-lender business-for-self program, documenting real income and paying CRA before a lien closes off the cheapest path.

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Property tax arrears Windsor, ON

Example: redeeming an Ontario tax-arrears certificate with a private second mortgage

An illustrative homeowner with a registered tax-arrears certificate and a redemption deadline approaching uses a private second mortgage to pay the municipality in full, cancel the certificate, and keep a low-rate first mortgage in place.

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Property tax arrears Kitchener, ON

Example: clearing early property tax arrears with an alt-A refinance before a certificate

Illustrative homeowners who fall behind on property taxes act before a certificate is registered, using an alt-A refinance to clear the arrears at a lower cost than a later private deal would likely require.

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After bankruptcy Oshawa, ON

Example: buying 18 months after a bankruptcy discharge with a B-lender and an exit to A

Eighteen months after discharge from a first bankruptcy, an illustrative borrower with two clean re-established trade lines buys through a B-lender, before the two-year A-lender guideline, with a mapped exit to prime.

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After bankruptcy Hamilton, ON

Example: refinancing a home kept through bankruptcy while credit rebuilds

An illustrative homeowner who kept their home through a bankruptcy uses a private refinance against their equity to consolidate high-interest debt while re-establishing credit, with a mapped exit to prime.

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After bankruptcy London, ON

Example: buying after a second bankruptcy with a private mortgage and a longer path to A pricing

Discharged from a second bankruptcy, which stays on a credit report far longer, an illustrative borrower uses a private mortgage and a strong down payment to buy now, with a realistic, longer path back to prime.

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Illustrative example, not a real client file. This scenario is a composite written to show how a file like this can be structured; it describes no real client, and no real outcome is claimed. Any rate shown is a dated scenario assumption (2026), not a current rate or offer. Approvals, rates, fees and costs depend on your situation and on lender and insurer criteria at the time of application.