Rental & Airbnb mortgages.
From the first rental condo to a growing portfolio — with the rent counted properly and the next purchase already in the structure. BC and Alberta.
Investment property financing hides its outcomes in the fine print: two lenders quote the same rate, but one counts your rent through an offset and approves the file while the other's add-back method kills it; one reads twelve months of Airbnb deposits while another pretends short-term rental income doesn't exist; one finances your fourth property while another capped you at two. The portfolio investors who scale aren't finding better rates — they're being placed at the right desks, in the right order, with each purchase structured so the next one stays possible.
Every stage of the portfolio.
The single condo or house that starts the portfolio — financed with the rent counted properly.
STR income read by the lenders who actually count it — and structured around the ones who don't.
Property two through ten — as the count grows, lender appetite changes and placement becomes the strategy.
The next purchase funded from equity in the home or rentals you already own.
Repricing investment property debt, or restructuring it around the next acquisition.
Duplexes, triplexes, and suited houses — the sweet spot between residential pricing and rental income.
Three lanes for landlords.
The quiet variable is how each lender counts the rent: an offset at one lender approves the same file an add-back kills at another. We run your numbers through both methods before choosing the desk.
Where STR files usually live: banks that won't touch Airbnb income at all give way to lenders who read the actual deposits — or underwrite the property on long-term market rent as the floor.
The acquisition tool: close fast, renovate, tenant the property — then refinance onto conventional rental terms once the income is real.
Rates, ratios, and rental-income policies are typical ranges for illustration — last reviewed July 2026 — and vary sharply by lender. Model the equity-funded down payment with the equity take-out calculator and payments with the mortgage payment calculator. For 5+ unit buildings, see multi-family mortgages.
Case Studies — files like this
Anonymized case studies from our files. Names and identifying details removed.
- Case study · Residential / PrimeTwo Modest Incomes and a TDS of About 47%: A Major Bank Financed a Second Rental Condo at About 78% in LangleyOn two modest incomes with a TDS of about 47%, a married couple bought a second rental, a Langley condo, at about 78% in 2022 with a major Canadian bank's rental program, $380,000 at 3.60% on a five-year adjustable term.Read the file →
- Case study · Residential / PrimeOne Modest Salary and a Second Rental: A Major Bank Financed a Townhome at About 67% in VernonOn one salary of about $45,000, a single client bought a second Vernon rental, a townhome, at about 67% in 2022 with a major Canadian bank, about $210,000 at 5.30%, the down payment drawn from equity in the first rental.Read the file →
- Case study · Residential / PrimeA Realtor's Second Purchase of 2022, on One Strong Year: A Major Bank Financed a Downtown Vancouver Rental Condo at 80%Eight months after a first home on stated income, a realtor bought a downtown Vancouver rental condo at 80% in 2022 with a major Canadian bank, about $880,000 at 4.40%, qualified on the 2021 net income of about $110,000 alone.Read the file →
More case studies like these (18)
- New Permanent Residents' First Rental Condo
- First Rental House, Ratios Well Over 50%
- One Salary, No-Credit Spouse, Rental House
- Third Property in a Year, Ratio Near 50%
- Assignment Rental on Commission and Tips
- Presale Completed on a Private Open Term
- Survivor's Benefit and Suite Rent Counted
- Rental Bought on a Work Permit at 80%
- Alberta Rental's Tax Arrears Cleared
- Equity Line at 29%: Debt, Deposit, Title
- Business Owner's Rental Off Private Rates
- Private Open Mortgage Held a Rental Condo
- Alberta Condo Out of a Private Mortgage
- Alberta Presale on a Private Open Mortgage
- Foreclosure Stopped With a MIC Refinance
- Private Second Funds a New Franchise
- Alberta Presale Approved on Net Worth
- Officer Buys a Townhouse, Keeps the Condo
Common landlord questions.
How much down payment does a rental property need?+
Plan on at least 20% — pure investment properties sit outside the insured programs that allow small down payments on a home you live in, so financing tops out at 80% loan-to-value conventionally. The classic exception: buy a duplex or suited house, live in one unit, and owner-occupied rules apply to the whole purchase.
Does rental income help me qualify?+
Yes — but how much depends on the lender's method. Some offset a percentage of the rent against the property's payment; others add it to your income. The same rent, run through the two methods, can produce approvals tens of thousands of dollars apart, which is why we model your file both ways before placing it.
Do lenders count Airbnb income?+
Some genuinely do — usually wanting 12+ months of hosting statements — while many banks ignore short-term rental income entirely or substitute long-term market rent. That spread makes STR financing a placement game: the property that 'doesn't qualify' at the branch often qualifies fine at a desk that reads the actual deposits. Local STR licensing rules also matter; have yours in order.
Can I use my home's equity for the down payment?+
It's the standard playbook: a refinance to 80% of your home's value, or a HELOC to 65%, funds the rental's down payment — and structured properly, the borrowing tied to the investment keeps its interest cleanly trackable. Our equity take-out calculator models it; we structure it.
Why did my bank decline rental number four?+
Most banks quietly cap how many rental properties they'll finance per borrower — the file drowns in its own portfolio paperwork. Monolines, credit unions, and Alternative lenders each draw the line differently, so growing portfolios rotate lenders by design. That rotation is the strategy, not a workaround.
Fixed or variable on a rental?+
It's a cash-flow decision more than a rate call: the rent is fixed monthly, so payment stability has real value — but variable's prepayment flexibility suits properties you may sell or refinance inside the term. We run both against your hold plan rather than defaulting either way.
Buying the next door? Have these ready.
- The property — purchase contract, or address and mortgage details for a refinance
- Existing rental portfolio — addresses, mortgages, and rents (the T1 rental schedule helps)
- Leases, or market-rent comparables for a vacant purchase — we can source
- For Airbnb: 12+ months of hosting statements and payout history
- Personal income documents — T1s, NOAs, and job or business income
- Down-payment source — savings, or the equity plan we can structure
- Property tax bills and strata documents where applicable
Building the portfolio? Place each door deliberately.
Tell us what you own, what you're buying, and how the rent flows — long-term or Airbnb — and we'll show you the lender order that keeps door five as fundable as door one.