New To Canada
Program

Acceptable Loan Purpose & Applicable Loan-to-Value Limits:

• Purchase transactions: 95% LTV
  • Property value ≤ $500,000 - 5% down payment required
  • Property value > $500,000 and < $1,000,000 - 5% down payment required up to $500,000, with an additional 10% down payment on the portion of the home value above $500,000

  Note: All mortgage insurance applications received between December 11, 2015 and February 14, 2016 where the closing date is after July 1, 2016; or received on or after February 15, 2016, the above minimum down payment guidelines will apply.

Loan Security:

• First mortgages

Eligible Properties:

• Maximum 2 units where 1 unit must be owner occupied
• New construction covered by a lender approved New Home Warranty Program
• Existing resale properties
• Readily marketable residential dwellings, located in markets with demonstrated ongoing re-sale demand
• Estimated remaining economic life of the property should be a minimum of 25 years

Maximum Property Value:

• Property value must be less than $1,000,000. Exceptions may be considered for LTV ≤ 80%.

Qualifying Terms and Interest Rates:

• Fixed, standard variable, capped variable and adjustable rate mortgages are permitted
• Maximum interest rate term of 25 years
• LTV >80%
  • For mortgages with fixed rate terms greater than or equal to 5 years, the contract rate is used.
  • For mortgages with fixed rate terms less than 5 years and all variable rates regardless of term, the qualifying interest rate is the greater of the contract rate or 5-year benchmark rate.
• LTV ≤ 80%
  • For mortgages with fixed rate terms greater than or equal to 3 years, the contract rate is used.
  • For mortgages with fixed rate terms less than 3 years and all variable rates regardless of term, the qualifying interest rate is the greater of the contract rate or 3-year posted rate.

Amortization Options:

• LTV > 80%: Up to 25 years
• LTV ≤ 80%: Up to 40 years

Premium Rate:

The premium payable will be the premium as a % of the total loan amount based on the rates below:

LTV ≤ 80% - A .25% premium surcharge will be applied for every 5 years of amortization beyond the traditional 25-year mortgage amortization period

Note: The insurance premium is non-refundable, paid at the time of closing and may be added onto the mortgage

Borrower Qualification:

Income & Employment

• Standard income and employment verification requirements apply
• 3 months minimum full time employment in Canada (borrowers being transferred under a corporate relocation program are exempt)

Credit

• 90.01-95%:  International credit report (Equifax or Transunion) demonstrating a strong credit profile OR two (2) alternative sources of credit demonstrating timely payments (no arrears) for the past 12 months. The two alternative sources required are:
  • Rental payment history
  • One other alternative source (hydro/utilities, telephone, cable, cell phone and auto insurance)
• Up to 90%: Letter of reference from a recognized financial institution OR six (6) months of bank statements from primary account

Down Payment

• Qualified home buyers may use traditional down payment sources including personal savings, non-repayable gift from immediate family member(s), proceeds from sale of property.
• 95% LTV, 5% of the down payment must be from own resources
• < 95% LTV, the remainder may be gifted from an immediate family member or from a corporate subsidy

Additional Criteria

• Must have immigrated or relocated to Canada within the last 60 months
• Must have a valid work permit or obtained landed immigrant status
• All debts held outside of the country must be included in the total debt servicing ratio(Rental income earned outside of Canada is to be excluded from the GDS/TDS calculation)
• Guarantors are not permitted
• Foreign Diplomats who do not pay tax in Canada are ineligible for this program

GDS/TDS Guidelines:

*Exceptions may be considered for LTV ≤ 80%

Documentation / Information Requirements*:

* Genworth Canada will no longer require the lender to submit the documentation upfront on every file, but may request that the lender provide a copy on a case-by-case basis

** Letter from landlord must indicate the following: name of tenant, monthly rent, length of tenancy, payment history. Bank statements must support the amount of rent and timeliness of payments outlined in the letter

Portability:

• Our mortgage default insurance is portable, so home buyers can take advantage of a lender's portability plan. For further details, refer to Portability Feature Product Overview.

Assumptions / Assignments:

• Mortgage is assumable subject to meeting lender guidelines

Eligible Products:

• Homebuyer 95 Program
• Progress Advance Program
• Purchase Plus Improvements Program

* For specific underwriting guidelines related to the above eligible products, please refer to the applicable product overview

Ineligible Products:

• Business For Self (Alt-A) Program
• Borrowed Down Payment Program
• Cash-Out Refinance Program
• Family Plan Program
• Vacation/Secondary Homes Program
• Investment Property Program