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Indi Mortgage
Rate increase

A full point in one move — the biggest hike in decades

Policy rate
2.5%
Prime
4.7%
Move
100 bps
Inflation
7.6%

A hundred basis points at once. For anyone holding a variable-rate mortgage with a fixed payment, this is where the trigger-rate conversation started in earnest.

In payment terms, a full point move adds roughly $56 a month to a variable-rate mortgage for every $100,000 borrowed, on a 25-year amortization. On a $300,000 mortgage that is about $168 a month.

If your income here includes overtime, shift premium or a bonus, rising rates squeeze qualifying twice: the payment goes up and the stress-test rate goes up with it. Which lender you apply to starts to matter a great deal, because they do not all average variable income the same way.

What the Bank said

“The Bank of Canada today increased its target for the overnight rate to 2.5%, with the Bank Rate at 2.75% and the deposit rate at 2.5%. Inflation in Canada is higher and more persistent than the Bank expected in its April Monetary Policy Report (MPR), and will likely remain around 8% in the next few months.”

The rate path around this decision

0.7%1.6%2.4%3.3%Jan 20Sep 20May 21Jan 22Sep 22Oct 22

For context, unemployment was running at about 4.8% and inflation at 7.6% around this decision.

Where this leaves you

Rate announcements make headlines; approvals turn on your own numbers. If you're buying, renewing or refinancing in Fort McMurray, the useful next step is finding out what you actually qualify for — see current rates, run the math, or start an application. You can also follow the local market in our Fort McMurray housing market reports.

What does 2.5% mean for your mortgage?

Every file is different. Get a real answer based on your income and your situation.