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Three mortgage lenders in the Smarter Loans network: 8Twelve Mortgage, Homewise and nesto, from 4.04% at the lowest published rate, on amounts from $50,000 to $10 million. nesto decides within two days; the other two take about a week. Every one considers poor credit, because the property is the security, and every one sets a $1,500 monthly income minimum, which tells you how little the number decides: what matters is how you prove it. That is three of the seven on the national mortgage lenders page; the other four are Ontario-centred.
Canadian mortgage lending runs in three tiers, and the three lenders listed cover them differently. nesto is an A-tier lender: bank-level rates for a borrower who can prove income on tax slips and pass the stress test. 8Twelve and Homewise arrange across tiers, and Homewise publishes B-lender and private placements for self-employed borrowers, bruised credit and high debt. If a bank has said no, the application routes to the two that arrange B and private lending; the subprime mortgages and private mortgages pages explain what each tier costs and how to get back to a bank.
| $500,000 over 25 years | Monthly payment | Interest in the first five years |
|---|---|---|
| A-tier at 4.04% | About $2,641 | About $94,000 |
| B-tier at 6% | About $3,199 | About $141,000 |
Illustrative, Canadian semi-annual compounding; 4.04% is the lowest rate published among the lenders listed.
Two things, and the second is one that most Albertans have heard of and few understand.
No land transfer tax. Alberta charges registration fees on the mortgage and the transfer, a few hundred dollars on most purchases, rather than the land transfer tax that adds thousands to a closing in Ontario or British Columbia.
Limited recourse on a conventional mortgage. Under Alberta's Law of Property Act, a lender's recourse on a conventional residential mortgage granted by an individual is generally limited to the property itself: if the home is worth less than the mortgage when the lender takes it, the lender cannot pursue the borrower for the shortfall. Two limits matter. It applies to a conventional mortgage; an insured high-ratio mortgage, which Alberta's regulation defines as one for more than 75% of the property's value, is outside the protection. And a lender that knows the rule prices and structures around it, which is part of why Alberta lenders look hard at the down payment.
From 4.04% for an A-tier borrower, one to three points higher at B tier with a fee of around one percent, and into the teens for a private placement. On a $400,000 mortgage over 25 years, the payment is about $2,113 a month at 4.04% and about $2,559 at 6%; the gap is the price of how you qualify, not of the property. The mortgage payment calculator runs any amount.
Borrowing against a home you already own is on the home equity loans in Alberta page.
Reviewed by Vlad Sherbatov, Co-Founder and President, Smarter Loans. Last reviewed 18 September 2026. Lender figures are the lenders' published terms as checked August 2026; the payment example is illustrative.
Three in the Smarter Loans network: 8Twelve Mortgage, Homewise and nesto, from 4.04%, on $50,000 to $10 million. One decides within two days and two take about a week. Every one considers poor credit.
No. Alberta charges registration fees on the transfer and the mortgage, a few hundred dollars on most purchases, rather than the land transfer tax that adds thousands to a closing in Ontario or British Columbia.
On a conventional residential mortgage granted by an individual, a lender's recourse is generally limited to the property under Alberta's Law of Property Act: if the home is worth less than the mortgage, the lender cannot pursue you for the shortfall. It does not apply to an insured high-ratio mortgage, which Alberta's regulation defines as one for more than 75% of the property's value.
Yes. All three lenders listed consider poor credit, because the property is the security, and two arrange B-lender and private mortgages for bruised credit. Expect a larger down payment and a rate one to three points above a bank's.
On $400,000 over 25 years, about $2,113 a month at 4.04% and about $2,559 at 6%, the difference between an A-tier and a typical B-tier rate. The gap is the cost of how you qualify.
