Mortgage services · 10
Know your number first
Pre-qualifying is free, takes days not weeks, and commits you to nothing. You get the number that makes every other decision easier — and a rate held for up to 120 days while you shop.
Cost
Free — the consultation, the pre-approval, and the rate hold.
Rate hold
Up to 120 days. Rates rise? You keep the old one. They fall? You take the new one.
Credit impact
First conversation: none. Pre-approval: one small, shared inquiry.
The basics
A ceiling you can trust
House hunting without a number is window shopping. With one, every listing becomes a quick yes or no — and your offers carry weight, because the financing behind them is real.
Two terms you'll hear, in plain words:
- Pre-qualification — a quick estimate from a conversation about your income, savings, and debts.
- Pre-approval — the stronger version: documents checked, credit pulled once, and a rate held for up to 120 days.
Problems found now are to-do items. Problems found during a live offer, with a five-day financing deadline, are lost houses. That is the whole argument for starting early.
What this means for you
Most lenders hold your rate for 90–120 days once you're pre-approved. If rates rise while you shop, you keep the lower one. If they fall, you get the new lower rate. You cannot lose that coin toss.
Get ready
What to have handy
For the pre-approval itself (not the first call — that needs nothing):
- Government photo ID,
- A letter of employment and a recent pay stub,
- Two years of T4s or Notices of Assessment (the CRA's yearly tax summary),
- 90 days of history for your down payment savings,
- FHSA / RRSP statements, if you'll draw on them,
- A gift letter, if family is contributing.
Self-employed? Your list is a little different — see the Self-Employed page.
Between approval and keys
Protect your approval
A pre-approval is a strong signal, not a final contract. The lender still approves the specific house, and your finances need to look like they did at approval. So, between pre-approval and closing:
- No new car loans or big financing,
- No job changes without a call to me first,
- No large unexplained deposits — every big amount needs a paper trail.
If a purchase falls through, nothing bad happens: the approval and the rate hold stay alive for the next house, within the hold window. If the window expires, we simply re-hold at current rates.
Words that sound alike
Pre-qualified, pre-approved, approved
These three terms get used as if they mean the same thing. They do not, and the difference matters when you are making an offer.
- Pre-qualified. An estimate based on what you tell me. Quick, useful for planning, but no documents checked. It carries little weight with a seller.
- Pre-approved. Your income, down payment, and credit have been checked, and a lender has held a rate for you. This is what you want before you shop.
- Approved. The final yes on one specific property, after the lender reviews the home itself. This happens once your offer is accepted.
What this means for you
When a real estate agent asks if you are “pre-approved”, they mean the middle one. That is the version I set up for you, and it is free.
Even a full pre-approval is not a guarantee — the lender still has to approve the house, and your finances need to look the same at closing as they did at approval.
Common questions
Questions people ask
Short answers in plain English. Your situation may be different — ask me anything on a free call.
Does pre-qualifying cost anything?
No. The consultation, the pre-approval, and the rate hold are all free. On approved standard purchases the lender pays the brokerage (OAC), so you pay nothing at closing either.
Will it hurt my credit score?
The first conversation needs no credit check at all. At pre-approval there is one inquiry, which I reuse across every lender I shop — you don't take a hit per lender. The effect is small and fades within months.
Is a pre-approval a guarantee?
It's a strong signal, not a contract. The lender still has to approve the specific property, and your finances must still look the same. Keep things steady between approval and closing, and call me before any big financial move.
How long does it take?
The first call is 15 minutes. A full pre-approval usually comes together within a few days of your documents arriving. Starting a year before you plan to buy is not too early — the buyers who win usually did.
How much do I actually need for a down payment?
The minimum is 5% of the first $500,000 of the price, and 10% of the part above that, up to a $1.5 million purchase. Above $1.5 million the minimum is 20%. Beyond the down payment, budget another 1.5% to 4% of the price for closing costs — I give you the exact figures for your price range on the call.
Start with the number
Fifteen minutes, zero documents, zero obligation. You'll leave the call knowing your realistic range and your next three steps.