🧮 Run the Numbers · Chapter 1
The payment calculator that speaks Canadian.
Most calculators online are American — they compound monthly, and their answers are quietly wrong here. Canadian fixed rates compound semi-annually by law. This one does it properly, then shows you the payment-frequency cheat code below.
Term vs. amortization: the amortization is the marathon (the full payoff runway); your term is the race you're currently in. The rate you enter is only guaranteed for the term.
Payment Statement
FORM MC-01SEMI-ANNUAL COMPOUNDING
Annual, compounded semi-annually
The marathon, not the term
Principal & interest only. Excludes property tax, insurance, condo fees, and default-insurance premiums.
Monthly
—
12 payments / year
Bi-weekly (regular)
—
26 payments / year — the impostor
Accelerated bi-weekly
—
Half the monthly, every 2 weeks
✉️ The Renewal Letter Is a Test · Chapters 13–14
Price the phone call you haven't made yet.
Your renewal letter is an opening offer, priced for people who don't shop. Enter the letter's rate and the best competing rate you can find — this is what one negotiation is worth over the term.
"Great news — just sign here and you're all set!" = "We've selected a rate we'd prefer you not compare to anything." Your lender's retention team has better rates than the letter. You just have to make them show you.
Renewal Comparison
FORM MC-13WORKSHEET B-3
From the renewal letter
Broker quote / retention offer
Payment savings + additional principal reduction over the term. At maturity, switching lenders is penalty-free.
Enter your numbers — this strip prices the phone call.
⚖️ Refinancing Decoded · Chapters 12 & 15
Break the mortgage, or wait it out?
Breaking mid-term to grab a lower rate only wins if the savings beat the toll — counted over the months remaining on your current term only. Savings past your maturity date belong to the calendar, not the break.
Never decide from an estimated penalty. Request the exact written payout statement from your lender — the figure changes daily with rates and balance, and it's the only legitimate input for this math.
Break-Even Statement
FORM MC-15WORKSHEET B-4
Written figure only — never estimate
Appraisal + legal + discharge, minus lender promos
G ≈ balance × rate difference ÷ 12 (declining-balance effects make real savings slightly lower). Honest window: to old maturity only.
Enter your numbers — the verdict prints here.
⚡ Running Your Mortgage Like a Pro · Chapter 11
Small money, sent early, wins big.
Early-years payments are mostly interest — which makes early-years prepayments disproportionately violent. Every extra dollar skips the interest queue and lands straight on principal. See what your round-up and lump sum are actually worth.
Label lump sums as a principal prepayment in your lender's app or in writing — unlabelled money is sometimes applied as an early regular payment, which saves nothing. Then check the next statement.
Prepayment Impact
FORM MC-11THE ANNUAL SWEEP
The round-up
Check your annual privilege limit — commonly 10–20% of original principal
Assumes the rate holds for the full runway and prepayments stay within your privilege limits.
Enter your numbers — the compounding does the arguing.
🏡 The Retirement Code · Chapters 18–20
Build your own Donna table.
A reverse mortgage requires no payments — so the interest lands on the balance and compounds, undisturbed, for years. At ~7%, the debt doubles roughly every decade. This table shows the balance and your equity side by side — the exhibit for the family meeting.
"No payments" isn't a discount — it's a loan where the payments are made by your equity, silently, at compound interest. The two brakes: draw late (money taken at 80 compounds five years, not fifteen) and pay optionally (even partial interest payments bend the whole table down).
Compounding Projection
FORM MC-19THE FAMILY-MEETING EXHIBIT
Typically 1.5–2.5 pts above fixed mortgage rates
Run all three — the spread is the risk
| Years from now | Loan balance | Home value | Your equity |
|---|
Semi-annual compounding, no payments made, single advance today. The negative equity guarantee caps the estate's downside at the home's value — it does not cap the erosion.
Enter your numbers — then bring this table to the kitchen table.