How do mortgage brokers get paid — and does it cost you?
On a standard prime “A” mortgage the lender pays the broker a finder’s fee, so our service is typically free to you. Here’s exactly who pays, when a fee applies, and how it’s disclosed in writing under FSRA rules.
Lender-paid on prime dealsTypically free to youDoesn’t change your rateFees disclosed in writingFSRA #13737100+ lenders
It’s a fair thing to wonder before you hand a broker your financial life: if I’m not paying you, who is, and does it quietly cost me a worse rate? The honest answer is the opposite of what most people assume. On the vast majority of prime mortgages the lender — not you — pays the broker a finder’s fee for placing the deal, the same way a bank pays its own branch staff. You get the sharpest rate we can find across 100+ lenders and pay nothing for the advice, the shopping, or the negotiation. Where a fee does apply — private, alternative, or complex files — it’s disclosed to you in writing before you commit, so there are never surprises.
What you get
Why Canadians choose Mortgage Squad Advisors.
On standard prime “A” deals the lender pays the broker — our service is typically free to you
Your rate is set by the lender’s pricing and your profile, not by what the broker earns
We compare 100+ lenders and bring you the sharpest rate, backed by a rate-beat guarantee
Lender-paid compensation is a finder’s fee for placing your deal — the same cost the bank builds into its own channel
No fee to get pre-approved, no fee for advice, no obligation to proceed
When a fee genuinely applies (private / B-lender / complex files), it’s disclosed in writing upfront
Volume bonuses and trailer fees exist — we explain them plainly and never let them steer your recommendation
As a FSRA-licensed brokerage (#13737) we’re legally required to disclose our compensation and any conflicts
We put the lender-paid vs borrower-paid math side by side so you always see the real cost
You keep the freedom to walk away at any point — you owe us nothing until a deal you approve funds
Maya · 24/7 AI advisor
Question about mortgage broker? Maya answers instantly in 50+ languages.
You share your goals and numbers; we compare rates and terms across 100+ lenders. On a prime deal there’s no fee to you for any of this — not the pre-approval, not the advice, not the negotiation. You’re free to walk away at any point.
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We show you how we’re paid
Before you commit, we tell you plainly who pays: the lender on a standard prime file, or — on a private, alternative, or complex file — a disclosed borrower-paid fee. If any fee applies it’s in writing, in dollars, per FSRA rules, so there’s nothing hidden in the rate.
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The deal funds — then we’re paid
On a prime mortgage the lender pays us a finder’s fee only once your mortgage funds. Your rate and payment are exactly what you were quoted. If a borrower-paid fee was disclosed and agreed, it’s handled at closing — never a surprise on your statement.
How do mortgage brokers get paid on a standard prime deal?
On the large majority of prime — or “A” — mortgages, the lender pays the broker, not you. When we place your approved mortgage with a lender and it funds, that lender pays us a finder’s fee: a commission for sourcing and packaging a qualified borrower and handing them a deal-ready file. It is simply the lender’s cost of acquiring business through the broker channel instead of staffing and running its own branch network — a cost every bank carries one way or another. For you, the borrower, the pre-approval, the rate shopping, the advice, and the negotiation are typically free.
That surprises people, because it feels like someone must be paying somewhere. Someone is — the lender — and it’s money the bank would otherwise spend on its own sales staff. Working with a mortgage broker doesn’t add a layer of cost on top of the bank; it swaps the bank’s single in-house channel for an independent one that shops 100+ lenders against each other. If you want the deeper “what actually happens behind the scenes” version, see what a mortgage broker does. The short version: you get the sharpest rate we can find, and the lender covers our fee.
Does the broker’s pay change your rate? (The honest answer)
This is the fear worth naming directly: if the lender is paying you, are you quietly steering me into a higher rate to earn more? The honest answer is no — and it’s worth understanding why, not just taking it on faith. Your rate is set by two things: the lender’s posted pricing for your product, and your own profile — credit score, income, down payment, and the property. The finder’s fee the lender pays us sits outside that equation; it doesn’t get added to your rate or your payment.
Our incentive actually runs the other way. Because we put 100+ lenders in competition for your file, the way we win — and earn the referrals that keep a brokerage alive — is by beating what you’d get on your own or at a single bank. A reputable broker passes along the sharpest rate available, which is why we back ours with a rate-beat guarantee: you can hold our number up against the market. If you want to see how our access compares, our lender network and current mortgage rates lay it out. The compensation model and the low-rate goal point in the same direction.
Finder’s fees, trailer fees, and volume bonuses — explained plainly
Not all lender compensation looks the same, and you deserve to know the shapes it takes. The most common is an upfront finder’s fee: a one-time payment, typically a modest percentage of your loan amount, paid by the lender when your mortgage funds. Some lenders instead pay a smaller trailer fee — a slice paid each year you stay with that lender. A trailer model rewards keeping clients in a mortgage that genuinely fits over time rather than churning them, which can align a broker’s interest with yours.
Then there are volume bonuses: some lenders pay brokers a little more for sending a lot of business their way. This is the honest edge of the conversation, so we’ll be blunt — a compensation structure like that could, in the wrong hands, tempt a broker to favour one lender over a better fit for you. Our answer is transparency and discipline: your recommendation is driven by rate, terms, prepayment flexibility, and approval odds for your situation, full stop. We’re glad to tell you which lender we’re placing you with and why, and to show you the runners-up we set aside.
When do you actually pay a broker fee — and how it’s disclosed
There are real cases where you pay the broker, and hiding them would defeat the point of a page about honesty. Borrower-paid fees typically appear on files the banks won’t simply approve: private mortgages, some alternative and B-lender deals, bruised-credit or self-employed situations, and complex or time-sensitive files that take substantial work to structure and place. On these deals the lender often pays little or nothing to the broker, so a broker fee compensates for arranging financing you likely couldn’t secure on your own. It should always be weighed against the alternative — which is frequently no approval at all.
Crucially, none of this is a surprise. In Ontario, mortgage brokerages are regulated by FSRA, and licensed brokers are legally required to disclose their compensation and any material conflict of interest in writing, before you enter into the mortgage. That means any borrower-paid fee is presented to you in dollars, in a signed disclosure — not tucked into the rate or the fine print. Our brokerage licence is #13737. If a fee ever applies to your file, you’ll know the exact number, and why, long before you decide to proceed.
Why lender-paid compensation works in your favour
Put it all together and the model that first sounds suspicious turns out to be the one that helps you. A bank branch can offer only that bank’s own products and pays its sales staff out of the margin on your loan — a cost you never see itemized and can’t shop around. A broker, on a prime deal, is paid by whichever of 100+ lenders you ultimately choose, at no cost to you, which means every lender has to compete on your rate to win the placement. More competition sits on your side of the table, not the bank’s. Our bank vs broker comparison walks through this dollar for dollar.
The transparency is the point. We’ll tell you exactly who pays us, show you the lender-paid versus borrower-paid math where both are options, and back our rate with a guarantee. If you’re vetting brokers, our list of questions to ask a mortgage broker and our guide to getting the best mortgage rate will help you push on compensation and pricing with anyone — us included. You can apply or start a free pre-approval with no cost and no obligation, or ask Maya how we’d be paid on your specific file, any time.
FAQ
Common questions, answered.
Don’t see yours? Ask Maya — instant answer, any time.
How do mortgage brokers get paid in Canada?
On a standard prime “A” mortgage, the lender pays the broker a finder’s fee (a commission) for placing your deal — so the service is typically free to you. The lender builds this cost into how it runs its broker channel, much like a bank pays its own branch staff. On certain private, alternative, or complex files a borrower-paid fee may apply instead, and that fee is always disclosed to you in writing before you commit.
Is a mortgage broker really free for me?
On the majority of prime deals, yes — the lender pays us, so you pay nothing for the pre-approval, the rate shopping, the advice, or the negotiation. The situations where you would pay a fee are the exceptions: private mortgages, some B-lender and alternative files, and unusually complex arrangements. In those cases the fee is spelled out in dollars, in writing, up front, so you can decide with full information.
Does the broker’s commission make my rate higher?
No. Your rate is determined by the lender’s pricing and your own profile — credit, income, down payment, and property — not by what we earn. Because we compete 100+ lenders against each other, our incentive is to bring you the sharpest rate; a better rate for you is what wins your business and your referrals. We also back it with a rate-beat guarantee, so you can check our number against the market.
What is a finder’s fee, and who pays it?
A finder’s fee is the commission a lender pays a broker for finding and placing a qualified borrower — it’s the lender’s cost of acquiring your business through the broker channel rather than its own branches. On a prime mortgage the lender pays this fee, not you, and only after your mortgage funds. It typically ranges as a modest percentage of the loan amount, and it doesn’t change the rate or payment you were quoted.
What are trailer fees and volume bonuses?
An upfront finder’s fee is paid once when your mortgage funds. Some lenders instead pay a smaller “trailer” fee spread across the years you stay with them, which rewards keeping clients in a mortgage that genuinely fits. Volume bonuses are extra compensation a lender may pay brokers who send a lot of business. We’re transparent that these exist — and our recommendation is driven by your rate, terms, and fit, never by which lender happens to pay us more.
Isn’t there a conflict of interest if lenders pay you?
It’s the right question to ask, and we’ll answer it honestly: yes, a poorly-run broker could chase the biggest payout. Two things guard against that. First, our business depends on getting you a great rate — unhappy clients don’t refer, and we compete with the banks on price. Second, as a FSRA-licensed brokerage (#13737) we are legally required to disclose our compensation and any conflict of interest, so you can see the incentives and judge for yourself.
When would I actually pay a broker fee myself?
Borrower-paid fees show up on files the banks won’t simply rubber-stamp: private mortgages, some alternative and B-lender deals, self-employed or bruised-credit situations, and complex or urgent files that take significant work to place. In those cases a broker fee compensates for arranging financing you likely couldn’t get on your own — and it’s weighed against the value of actually getting funded. It is always disclosed in writing before you agree to anything.
How is the fee disclosed under FSRA rules?
In Ontario, mortgage brokerages are regulated by FSRA, and licensed brokers must disclose their compensation and any material conflict of interest to you in writing before you enter into the mortgage. That means any borrower-paid fee is presented in dollars, in a signed disclosure, not buried in fine print. Our brokerage licence is #13737, and we’d rather over-explain how we’re paid than have you wonder.
How is this different from getting a mortgage at my bank?
A bank branch can only offer that bank’s own products, and it pays its staff out of the margin on your mortgage — a cost baked into the rate you never see itemized. A broker compares 100+ lenders and, on prime deals, is paid by whichever lender you choose — at no cost to you. The result is more competition on your rate, not less. See our bank vs mortgage broker comparison for the full breakdown.
