This stage sits outside the numbered journey because it happens before any of it. On most standard residential mortgages, you do not pay the broker anything. The lender pays the brokerage a fee when your mortgage closes. On private or alternative lending, a fee can apply, and it is disclosed to you upfront.
Pekoe Mortgages is licensed in Ontario (FSRA #13321) and Alberta (RECA). This stage page routes you to the answer. It does not replace it.
Which lenders ever see your file. A bank branch offers its own products. A broker compares across banks, credit unions and other lenders, which matters on a straightforward file as much as a difficult one.
It also decides who is accountable. A licensed brokerage is regulated, and you can verify the licence before you hand over a single document.
| Step | Who does it | What it produces |
|---|---|---|
| Verify the licence of whoever you are talking to | You | Confirmation they can legally arrange your mortgage |
| Ask who pays them on your type of deal | You | A straight answer before any work starts |
| Ask which lenders they can actually place with | You | The real breadth of your options |
| Decide whether your file is straightforward or not | You, with their input | Realistic expectations for stages 1 and 2 |
Asking the questions above, and checking the licence yourself rather than taking it on trust.
Regulated by FSRA in Ontario and RECA in Alberta. Both maintain public registers you can search.
No lender, no credit check, no documents. Nothing in this stage touches your credit file.
| Question to ask | Why it matters | What a weak answer looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Are you licensed, and under which regulator? | Only a licensed brokerage can arrange your mortgage | Vagueness, or a name you cannot find on the register |
| Who pays you on a deal like mine? | Compensation differs between prime and private lending | Avoiding the question until later |
| How many lenders can you place this with? | Determines whether your file gets shopped or slotted | A single lender, without saying so |
| What would make this file difficult? | Tells you whether they have read it properly | Confidence without having asked anything |
What it costs. What a mortgage broker costs in Ontario and in Alberta.
Licensing and verification. How to check a broker’s licence, FSRA licensing in Ontario, and RECA licensing in Alberta.
Lending your own money, or being asked to. Whether you need a licence to lend your own money and when independent legal advice is required.
Licensed in both provinces, and checkable. FSRA Brokerage Licence #13321 in Ontario and RECA licensed in Alberta. Both registers are public, so run the search above on us before you send anything.
Kitchener-Waterloo and Canmore. A digital brokerage working your file remotely anywhere in Ontario or Alberta.
The whole lender market, not one shelf. Banks, credit unions, monoline lenders and private lenders, so a file goes to the lender whose rules it actually fits instead of the one whose branch you happened to walk into.
What we cost you. Nothing on most standard residential mortgages, as above. On alternative and private deals any fee is in writing before you sign.
We open the renewal, you don’t chase it. We come to you before your lender’s letter does, and what you get back is a net number with any discharge and registration cost already subtracted, not a rate held up against a rate.
And we say when staying put wins. Plenty of files are better off signing with the existing lender, and we will tell you that rather than move a mortgage to justify the work.
On a prime residential mortgage the lender pays the brokerage and you pay nothing out of pocket. On alternative and private deals a fee may apply, and it is disclosed in writing before you sign.
FSRA maintains a public register in Ontario and RECA does the same in Alberta. Search the name before you send any documents.
A bank offers its own products. A broker compares across banks, credit unions and other lenders, and where your mortgage qualifies, that includes insured or insurable pricing, which can be very competitive, including at renewal. That matters on a straightforward file too, not just a complicated one. If your income or property is less standard, a broker can also place the file with a lender whose rules it fits.
No. Nothing at this stage involves a credit check. That happens at stage 2, and only with your consent.
You can, but it often works against you. Each broker who submits your file may run a credit check, which can affect your score. The bigger risk is consistency. If two brokers present your income, down payment or property differently to the same lender or mortgage insurer, the mismatch can flag your file across lenders and insurers. Pick one broker and give them the full picture.
It is separate legal advice for one party to a transaction, commonly required on private deals or where someone is signing without a direct benefit. Your lawyer will tell you if it applies.
Stage 1, working out what you can buy and for how much, before you look at listings.
Pekoe Mortgages is a licensed brokerage in Ontario (FSRA #13321) and Alberta (RECA). This page is general information, not financial advice, and does not create a broker and client relationship.