Mortgage Pre-Approval in Calgary, AB
A mortgage pre-approval in Calgary shows you what a lender will approve before you look at a condo in the Beltline or a family home in Mahogany or Seton. If you're relocating from BC or Ontario, closing costs here work differently from what you'd pay back home, so we build your budget on Alberta's rules from the first call. Our Pre-Approval Assurance gets you a written pre-approval and a rate hold of up to 120 days, depending on the lender.
Are pre-qualification and pre-approval two different things?
They're different, because a pre-qualification is a rough estimate based on numbers you give us over the phone, with no documents checked. A pre-approval means a lender has reviewed your credit, income and down payment, and it comes with an amount and a rate hold in writing. If you plan to write an offer in Kensington or Bridgeland, bring the pre-approval.
How long is a Calgary pre-approval good for?
Rate holds last between 60 and 130 days depending on the lender, according to the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada. If you're moving from another province, line the hold up with your job start date. When a search runs past the hold, we refresh it so the rate and amount you're working from are still current.
Is there any way to get pre-approved for more besides waiting?
Paying off a car loan or a line of credit balance is often the fastest change you can make, because lenders qualify you at the greater of your contract rate plus 2% or 5.25%, and every monthly debt payment counts against you at that rate. On a $500,000 mortgage over 30 years, every 1 percentage point on your rate is worth roughly $283 to $298 a month, and we'll show you how much mortgage room each debt you clear gives back. If you still own in BC and want to buy before that home sells, bridge financing in Calgary can cover the down payment in the gap.
Get your Calgary pre-approval started
We hold 4.9 stars across more than 400 Google reviews. On a standard purchase the lender covers our fee in most cases, which means you don't pay us anything. Book a free call to get your Calgary numbers in writing.
Flow Mortgage Co. arranges mortgages through BRX Mortgage Inc. (operating as BRX Mortgage), licensed by the Real Estate Council of Alberta to deal in mortgages.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a land transfer tax in Calgary?
Alberta doesn't charge one. You pay Land Titles fees of $50 plus $5 for every $5,000 of the home's value, which comes to about $550 on a $500,000 home, plus a fee on the same formula to register the mortgage, so more of your savings can go to the down payment.
Should I deal with my renewal before I buy?
If your current term ends within a few months of your purchase, talk to us first, because a mortgage renewal in Calgary and a new purchase can affect each other. We'll line up both dates on your first call.