Mortgages

1. Special Offers: Take advantage of Special Offers.
2. Rapid PayDown: Weekly, bi-weekly payments or semi-monthly (as opposed to monthly) can save thousands of dollars in interest costs. Each payment whittles down the outstanding mortgage principal and adds to your home's equity. (Available on most mortgages)
3. Up to 15% Prepayment: Prepayment privileges assist in paying off your outstanding mortgage principal faster. Take advantage of them - perhaps by using your annual tax refund to repay a portion of your mortgage. In each calendar year, you can prepay up to 15% of the original principal amount of your mortgage. And at TD Canada Trust, you can make prepayments of as little as $100.00.
4. Double Up Payments: Increase your regular payment amount and save. You can do this once a year, by any amount up to a maximum of double the regular monthly payment, over the term of the mortgage. If your budget changes, you can later reduce your monthly payment back to the original regular monthly payment amount.
5. Portability Plus: Save with mortgage portability. The current rate, term, and mortgage amount may be ported to your new home after the sale of your existing home. If you meet the normal lending criteria, you can:
   • Take your existing mortgage with you when you buy a new home; if you like, you can increase your loan amount and blend your existing rate with the current market rate for the new funds.
   • Sell your home and let the new purchaser assume your mortgage. This can be a good selling feature if your existing rate is lower than what is currently available in the market.

   This benefit applies for the remaining term of your mortgage or a period of five years, whichever is less.

6. Shorten Your Amortization Period: Choose the shortest possible amortization period, say, a 20 year amortization rather than 25 years. The slightly higher payments can help you to substantially reduce your interest costs over the life of your mortgage. Try to reduce the amortization period every time you renew your mortgage.

   The Effect of a Shorter Amortization Period $100,000 mortgage at 10% interest
   Amortization Period In Years	25	20	15	10
   Monthly Payment of Principal and Interest	$894.50	$951.70	$1,062.30	$1,310.30
   Total Mortgage Payments Over Amortization Period	$268,350	$228,408	$191,214	$157,236
   Source: Mortgage Wise Booklet, Canadian Bankers Association

   
   
   
7. Make the largest regular principal and interest payment possible. For example, "accelerate" your payments and save thousands of dollars in interest costs. With an accelerated payment schedule, over a year you can end up paying the equivalent of an extra month's payment. Take your monthly payment and divide it by two (accelerated bi-weekly) and multiply by 26 to get your new annual payment. Or divide your monthly payment by four (accelerated weekly), then multiply by 52. For example, if your monthly mortgage payment is $800 ($9,600 annually), by making accelerated bi-weekly payments, you'll pay $400 every two weeks and $10,400 annually. If you only take your annual payments and divide them by 26 or 52, by the end of the year, you will not have paid off much more of your mortage.

   Accelerated Bi-weekly vs. Monthly payments $100,000 mortgage at 6.5% interest compounded semi-annually
   Payment Frequency	Number of Payments	Interest Costs	Principal Payments
   Monthly @ $670/month	300 (25 years)	$100,956	$100,000
   Accelerated Bi-weekly @ $335/2 weeks	538 (20 years, 9 months)	$80,354	$100,000
   Amount saved:		$20,602
   Source: Mortgage Wise Booklet, Canadian Bankers Association

   
   
   

8. Large Downpayment: The larger the downpayment, the smaller the amount being borrowed. Less borrowed means less to pay back.
9. Other Payments: You may choose to repay your closed residential mortgage at any time. However, there will be a charge of either 3 months' interest on the amount being prepaid, or an Interest Rate Differential (IRD) charge calculated to the end of the remaining term of the mortgage, whichever is greater.
10. Save at renewal time. Just ask these questions:
    • "What would my payments be if I shortened the amortization period?"
    • "What would I save if I pay my mortgage weekly or bi-weekly?" (You'll save on interest)
    • "How many extra payments can I make at no additional cost?"

⊃1; Due to Quebec legislation, applications from Quebec residents cannot be accepted online or over the phone. Please visit any branch to apply.