3 Ways to Pay Down Your Mortgage Today!

Katherine Martin • July 15, 2016

Mortgages are funny things. When you’re buying a house, you can’t wait to hear these words: “Your mortgage has been approved”. But what that really means is that you are going to be a homeowner. And as discussed in the previous article, there is a lifestyle element of homeownership that is very attractive. But let’s not fool ourselves, a mortgage is debt; it’s money owed. When you sign mortgage documents, you are most likely taking on the most debt you will ever be responsible for.

The best kind of mortgage is one that is paid off as quickly as possible. So let’s go over three ways you can pay down your mortgage as quickly as possible. Because the very best mortgage is no mortgage at all!

Accelerate Your Payment Frequency

Sounds simple enough, but making the change from a monthly payment to an accelerated bi-weekly payment is one of the easiest ways to turbo-charge the repayment of your mortgage over a long period of time. Chances are you won’t even notice a difference.

Typically, on monthly payments, your mortgage is split into 12 equal payments. Accelerated bi-weekly payments divide your payments in half, but rather than 24 payments, you make 26. It’s the extra 2 payments that accelerate the repayment of your mortgage.

Increase Your Mortgage Payment

Unless you have a no-frills mortgage, which are popular with some banks, you should be able to increase your payment amount by 10–25% per payment! So if you get a raise at work, or happen to pay off a debt, consider rolling this newfound money directly into the prepayment of your mortgage.

Increasing your regular payment is a lot like signing up for a forced long-term savings plan. The extra money you put on your mortgage isn’t a prepayment of interest, but actually goes directly to the principal and lowers the amount of interest you pay over time.

The good thing about increasing your payment voluntarily is that if money gets tight in the future, you can always have your payment reduced to the original amount!

Making a Lump-sum Payment

As with the regular payment increase, when you make a lump-sum payment to your mortgage everything goes directly towards the principal balance. Most mortgage products allow you to put anywhere from 10–25% of the original mortgage amount as a lump-sum payment once per year.

The lump-sum payment option is perfect for any time you receive an unexpected amount of money and you aren’t exactly sure what to do with it, like an inheritance. If you receive a year-end bonus, make a habit of applying it to your mortgage. You could take years off your amortization! 

Not sure where to spend your tax return? Well, you should probably consider taking a nice warm vacation this winter. We live in Canada, and its cold here, although you might not remember that right now, because it’s July and it’s gorgeous outside. (You thought I was going to suggest you make a lump-sum payment on your mortgage? Well, you can do that too if you like, but a warm vacation is a lot more fun!)

There you have it, it’s a collection of the small things you can do today that will help you be mortgage free tomorrow. 

This article was originally published in the July 2016 Dominion Lending Centres Newsletter.

Katherine Martin


Origin Mortgages

Phone: 1-604-454-0843
Email: kmartin@planmymortgage.ca
Fax: 1-604-454-0842


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Mortgages Aren’t One-Size-Fits-All

By Katherine Martin • December 17, 2025
Why the Cheapest Mortgage Isn’t Always the Smartest Move Some things are fine to buy on the cheap. Generic cereal? Sure. Basic airline seat? No problem. A car with roll-down windows? If it gets you where you're going, great. But when it comes to choosing a mortgage? That’s not the time to cut corners. A “no-frills” mortgage might sound appealing with its rock-bottom interest rate, but what’s stripped away to get you that rate can end up costing you far more in the long run. These mortgages often come with severe limitations—restrictions that could hit your wallet hard if life throws you a curveball. Let’s break it down. A typical no-frills mortgage might offer a slightly lower interest rate—maybe 0.10% to 0.20% less. That could save you a few hundred dollars over a few years. But that small upfront saving comes at the cost of flexibility: Breaking your mortgage early? Expect a massive penalty. Want to make extra payments? Often not allowed—or severely restricted. Need to move and take your mortgage with you? Not likely. Thinking about refinancing? Good luck doing that without a financial hit. Most people don’t plan on breaking their mortgage early—but roughly two-thirds of Canadians do, often due to job changes, separations, relocations, or expanding families. That’s why flexibility matters. So why do lenders even offer no-frills mortgages? Because they know the stats. And they know many borrowers chase the lowest rate without asking what’s behind it. Some banks count on that. Their job is to maximize profits. Ours? To help you make an informed, strategic choice. As independent mortgage professionals, we work for you—not a single lender. That means we can compare multiple products from various financial institutions to find the one that actually suits your goals and protects your long-term financial health. Bottom line: Don’t let a shiny low rate distract you from what really matters. A mortgage should fit your life—not the other way around. Have questions? Want to look at your options? I’d be happy to help. Let’s chat.

Bank of Canada Rate Announcement Dec 10th, 2025

By Katherine Martin • December 10, 2025
Bank of Canada maintains policy rate at 2.1/4%. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Media Relations Ottawa, Ontario December 10, 2025 The Bank of Canada today held its target for the overnight rate at 2.25%, with the Bank Rate at 2.5% and the deposit rate at 2.20%. Major economies around the world continue to show resilience to US trade protectionism, but uncertainty is still high. In the United States, economic growth is being supported by strong consumption and a surge in AI investment. The US government shutdown caused volatility in quarterly growth and delayed the release of some key economic data. Tariffs are causing some upward pressure on US inflation. In the euro area, economic growth has been stronger than expected, with the services sector showing particular resilience. In China, soft domestic demand, including more weakness in the housing market, is weighing on growth. Global financial conditions, oil prices, and the Canadian dollar are all roughly unchanged since the Bank’s October Monetary Policy Report (MPR). Canada’s economy grew by a surprisingly strong 2.6% in the third quarter, even as final domestic demand was flat. The increase in GDP largely reflected volatility in trade. The Bank expects final domestic demand will grow in the fourth quarter, but with an anticipated decline in net exports, GDP will likely be weak. Growth is forecast to pick up in 2026, although uncertainty remains high and large swings in trade may continue to cause quarterly volatility. Canada’s labour market is showing some signs of improvement. Employment has shown solid gains in the past three months and the unemployment rate declined to 6.5% in November. Nevertheless, job markets in trade-sensitive sectors remain weak and economy-wide hiring intentions continue to be subdued. CPI inflation slowed to 2.2% in October, as gasoline prices fell and food prices rose more slowly. CPI inflation has been close to the 2% target for more than a year, while measures of core inflation remain in the range of 2½% to 3%. The Bank assesses that underlying inflation is still around 2½%. In the near term, CPI inflation is likely to be higher due to the effects of last year’s GST/HST holiday on the prices of some goods and services. Looking through this choppiness, the Bank expects ongoing economic slack to roughly offset cost pressures associated with the reconfiguration of trade, keeping CPI inflation close to the 2% target. If inflation and economic activity evolve broadly in line with the October projection, Governing Council sees the current policy rate at about the right level to keep inflation close to 2% while helping the economy through this period of structural adjustment. Uncertainty remains elevated. If the outlook changes, we are prepared to respond. The Bank is focused on ensuring that Canadians continue to have confidence in price stability through this period of global upheaval. Information note The next scheduled date for announcing the overnight rate target is January 28, 2026. The Bank’s next MPR will be released at the same time.
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