Hey Everyone,
After last week’s note about using your mortgage to clean up debt, I got a bunch of texts that all sounded like:
“So… can I refinance to pay for ______?”
In most cases: yes.
When you refinance and pull equity from your home, you can generally use the funds for whatever you want (as long as it’s legal). A lender may ask the general purpose during the application, but they typically don’t require quotes, invoices, or receipts for how you spend the money. Their main focus is simple: can you qualify and comfortably make the new payment?
Here are the common ones I hear:
Pay off credit cards / consolidate debt: very common, and often the biggest monthly cash-flow win.
Renovations: improve the home and (sometimes) its value.
Wedding / major life expense: usually better than carrying it on high-interest credit.
Help the kids: down payment help, tuition, or getting them out of expensive debt, if it doesn’t derail your own plan.
Buy a car: sometimes cheaper than auto-loan rates, depending on your situation.
Start a business: can be a lower-rate source of capital, but it increases the stakes, plan it carefully.
Invest: possible, but risk varies massively, this is one we should talk through carefully.
How it works (high level)
We estimate your home’s value and your current mortgage balance
We confirm what you qualify for (in Canada, refinances are typically up to 80% of the home’s value)
We shop rates/terms and structure the payment
Funds are advanced at closing
The only real question
Does this improve your monthly situation and fit your budget?
If your mortgage payment goes up, but you’re eliminating higher-interest payments and freeing up cash flow, it can be a smart move. If the new payment strains things, we rethink the approach.
If you want me to run the numbers
Just send:
your current mortgage balance
a rough home value
how much you want to pull out
what debts/payments you’re trying to replace (and their rates, if you know them)
No judgment, no lecture, just math and options.
-Andrew
Text me, right now! 250-919-5474
I don’t say this on a whim, I’m serious, if you text me now, I can show you exactly where you stand within a few hours. No stress, no pressure, no obligation.
Just a simple text that can put you at ease.