CMHC mortgage insurance is required when your down payment is less than 20% of the purchase price. The premium is added to your mortgage balance — not paid upfront — and ranges from 2.80% to 4.00% depending on your down payment percentage. This calculator shows your exact premium and how it affects your monthly payment.
Required when down payment is below 20%. Available on homes up to $1.5M since Jan 2025.
Enter your purchase price and down payment (as a dollar amount or percentage — both sync automatically). Select your amortization period and province. Ontario, Quebec, and Manitoba charge provincial tax on the CMHC premium itself, which this calculator includes automatically.
The premium tier table at the bottom highlights which tier applies to your down payment percentage.
The CMHC Premium is the insurance cost expressed as a dollar amount. This is added to your mortgage balance on closing day — you do not pay it upfront. So if you're borrowing $520,000 and your premium is $16,120, your actual insured mortgage becomes $536,120.
The Premium Rate tells you which tier you're in: 4.00% for 5–9.99% down, 3.10% for 10–14.99% down, and 2.80% for 15–19.99% down. Putting down just 5% more can drop your tier and save thousands in insurance costs — this calculator makes it easy to see whether stretching your down payment is worth it.
The Monthly Payment Impact shows how much the insurance premium adds to your regular payment. Because it's amortized over 25–30 years, the monthly impact is relatively small — but the total cost is significant. CMHC insurance is available on homes priced up to $1.5 million (since January 2025), and on amortizations up to 30 years for first-time buyers and new construction purchasers.
CMHC (Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation) insurance protects lenders if you default. It's required for down payments under 20% and allows lenders to offer lower rates on high-ratio mortgages. You pay the premium but lenders benefit from the protection.
5%–9.99% down: 4.00% premium. 10%–14.99% down: 3.10% premium. 15%–19.99% down: 2.80% premium. The premium is added to your mortgage and amortized over your term.
No. CMHC insurance protects the lender against default. Mortgage life insurance or term life insurance protects your family if you die. They are completely different products.
Yes — put down 20% or more of the purchase price. On a $700,000 home, that means $140,000 down. If you can't reach 20%, CMHC insurance is mandatory.
Explore current rates from 16+ Canadian lenders, or read our guides to understand your options.