Mortgage Blog
Clarity. Confidence. A Mortgage That Works for You.
5 Mortgage Hills I'll Die On
October 14, 2026 | Posted by: Daryl Johnson
After years of structuring mortgages across Grey Bruce and Simcoe, there are a few things I believe so strongly that no rate sheet will talk me out of them. Here they are.
1. The lowest rate is not always the cheapest mortgage
A mortgage is a contract, not just a rate. The lowest rate on the board often comes with the sharpest teeth: bigger payout penalties, restrictions on paying it down, and terms that make it expensive to leave early. A slightly higher rate with fair penalties and real prepayment room can cost thousands less over the life of the loan. Cheap is what a mortgage costs you in total, not what the first line of the quote says.
2. A pre-approval that checked nothing is not a pre-approval
If nobody looked at your income, your documents, or your credit, you do not have a pre-approval. You have a guess with a logo on it. A real pre-approval means your file was actually reviewed, your numbers were verified, and a rate is held for you, usually 90 to 120 days. It is still conditional and it is not a guarantee, but it means you can shop for a home knowing where you truly stand.
3. Behind every rate quote is fine print, and the fine print is where the money is
How the penalty is calculated. Whether the mortgage is portable. Whether it is registered as a collateral charge, which changes what it costs to switch lenders later. None of that shows up in the advertised rate, and all of it shows up in your bank account eventually. Read the fine print, or work with someone who reads it for a living.
4. Your lender's first renewal letter is an opening bid. Never just sign it
That letter is designed to be signed and returned without a second thought, and lenders count on exactly that. Your renewal window opens 120 days before your term ends, and that window is your negotiating time. The first offer is rarely the best one available to you, and checking costs you nothing but a conversation.
5. A bank can only sell you its own product. That is the whole business model
A bank employee can only offer what is on their own shelf, even when a better fit exists somewhere else. That is not a criticism of the people, it is just the structure. I work with 57 lenders, so the recommendation starts with your situation and goes looking for the product that fits it, instead of starting with one product and fitting you into it.
The short version
Plan first. Read the fine print. Do not sign the first letter. And if a number sounds too simple, it probably skipped the parts that cost money.
Want a second set of eyes on your mortgage, or a plan before you start shopping? Run your numbers in about five minutes, with no credit check to get started: https://www.maapp.ca/app/daryl-johnson
Daryl Johnson, Mortgage Agent Level 2 | Mortgage Architects Brokerage #12728 | Licence #M22004539