Yovan Gabric | REALTOR®Free calculator
The CMHC premium, the tax you pay in cash at closing, and what the insurance costs over the life of the mortgage — plus what a bigger down payment would save.
Start here
Enter the price and your down payment. The results update as you type, and the table underneath shows the same home at every down payment step.
CMHC insurance premium
$22,3203.10% of the $720,000 mortgage, added to your balanceDown payment$80,000 · 10.0%
Mortgage before insurance$720,000
Premium at 3.10%$22,320
Total mortgage$742,320
Payment · 25 years at 4.49%$4,104 / month
Ontario sales tax on the premium (8%)$1,785.60
The premium is added to your mortgage. The 8% provincial sales tax on it cannot be — it is due in cash at closing, on top of land transfer tax and legal fees.Extra on your monthly payment$123 / month
Interest you pay because it is financed$14,703
Premium + interest over 25 years$37,023
Assumes the rate stays at 4.49% for the whole amortization. It will not, so treat this as a size-of-the-problem number rather than a forecast.Put down another$40,000
Premium rate falls to2.80%
Premium and tax you would save$3,542
That takes you to $120,000 down, a 15% down payment. Premium rates step down at 90%, 85% and 80% loan-to-value; sitting just above a step costs the most.Stress-test rate6.49%
Payment at that rate$4,968 / month
The greater of your rate plus 2% or 5.25%. Lenders qualify you on this payment, not the one you will actually make.Your price, rate and amortization, changing only the down payment.
| Down payment | Premium rate | Premium | Tax at closing | Monthly payment | Premium + interest |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $55,000 · 6.9% | 4.00% | $29,800 | $2,384 | $4,284 | $49,431 |
| $80,000 · 10% | 3.10% | $22,320 | $1,786 | $4,104 | $37,023 |
| $120,000 · 15% | 2.80% | $19,040 | $1,523 | $3,865 | $31,583 |
| $160,000 · 20% | None | — | — | $3,539 | — |
Estimates for planning only — not a mortgage approval, an offer of credit or mortgage advice. Premium rates match CMHC’s published table (checked 25 September 2026). Eligibility rules, rates and lender qualifying rules change. A licensed mortgage professional confirms what applies to you.
What the quick estimates leave out
On an $800,000 home, 10% down is $80,000 and the premium is 3.10%: $22,320. Put down $79,200 — 9.9% — and the rate jumps to 4.00% on a slightly larger loan: $28,832. Eight hundred dollars less down costs $6,512 more. The premium steps down at 10%, 15% and 20% down, and the worst place to sit is just above a step.
The premium is added to your mortgage, but Ontario's 8% sales tax on it cannot be. On that $22,320 premium it is $1,785.60, due at closing on top of land transfer tax and legal fees. Most closing-cost estimates leave it out.
Because the premium joins your balance, it earns interest for as long as the mortgage runs. At 4.49% over 25 years, that $22,320 premium costs about $37,000 in total. The calculator shows the real number for your purchase.
Since December 2024, first-time buyers and buyers of new construction can insure a 30-year amortization. It lowers the payment, and it adds 0.20% to the premium rate on top of the extra interest.
Before you empty the savings account
Reaching the next premium step can save thousands, but the cash has to come from somewhere. Every dollar you put down is a dollar you cannot use for closing costs, moving, or the repairs a home needs in its first year.
I spent more than 25 years in construction and renovation before I sold real estate, so when we walk a property I can tell you what it is likely to need and roughly what that costs. That belongs in the same conversation as the down payment.
Run it on a real purchase
The premium, the closing cash and the condition of the home, side by side. No cost and no obligation.
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Straight answers
Mortgage default insurance protects the lender if you stop making payments — not you. It is required when your down payment is under 20% of the purchase price, and you pay the premium. CMHC, Sagen and Canada Guaranty are the three insurers; this calculator uses CMHC's published rates.
It is a percentage of the mortgage before insurance, set by the loan-to-value ratio. With 5% to just under 10% down it is 4.00%; 10% to under 15% down, 3.10%; 15% to under 20% down, 2.80%. At 20% or more there is no premium. The percentage is added to your mortgage, so you never write a cheque for it.
Because the premium rate is set by which band your loan falls into, not by a smooth formula. Cross from 90.1% loan-to-value to 90% and the rate falls from 4.00% to 3.10% on the whole loan. The ladder table under the calculator shows every step for your price.
In Ontario, yes — 8% provincial sales tax on the premium, and CMHC is clear that it cannot be added to the loan. It is cash due at closing.
No. It is a one-time premium that becomes part of your mortgage balance at the start. It does not end, and it is not refunded, when your equity passes 20%.
5% of the first $500,000, plus 10% of the portion from $500,000 to $1.5 million. On a $900,000 home that is $25,000 plus $40,000: $65,000, or 7.2%. From $1.5 million up, you need 20% and the mortgage cannot be insured.
Since December 15, 2024, first-time buyers and buyers of new construction. Everyone else is limited to 25 years on an insured mortgage. The longer amortization adds 0.20% to the premium rate.
A down payment that comes from borrowed money — a personal loan or line of credit — rather than savings, a gift or the sale of another asset. At 5% to just under 10% down, CMHC charges 4.50% instead of 4.00%.
Yes. Send me the address and I will model the purchase — premium, closing cash, and what the home is likely to need in its first years. I am a REALTOR®, not a mortgage professional, so the mortgage itself and your approval come from a licensed lender or broker; I will happily work alongside whoever you choose.