Physician mortgage questions, answered

Yes. Several lenders let residents qualify on the income they are expected to earn after training instead of their resident salary. Scotiabank, for example, publishes sample projected incomes of $185,000 for first and second-year residents and $225,000 for third-year residents and up. Broker-channel lenders such as RFA also run medical professional programs for physicians in training.

It is a mortgage where the lender qualifies you on the income you are expected to earn as a practising professional, based on your training stage, specialty or signed contract, rather than on past tax returns. It exists because residents and new physicians have high future earnings but little income history.

Canadian rules set the minimum at 5% of the first $500,000 of the purchase price and 10% of the portion above that, for homes under $1.5 million. Homes at $1.5 million or more need 20% down. Some medical professional programs ask for more, or ask that part of the down payment come from your own savings, so the real answer depends on the lender.

It counts, but how much depends on the lender. Lenders add a monthly payment for your line of credit to your debt ratios, and they calculate that payment differently: some use your balance and some use your limit. On a large medical student line, that difference can change how much you can borrow by a meaningful amount.

Each lender sets its own window. RFA's medical professional program, for example, covers physicians in training or within 24 months of finishing residency or fellowship. Scotiabank's own article mentions both two and three years. If you are close to the end of a window, it is worth checking options before you sign anything.

Often, yes. Some programs include dentists, veterinarians, optometrists and chiropractors in their final year of school or shortly after graduating. The projected income lenders use for these professions varies widely, so we quote it lender by lender rather than as one number.

No. Zero-down physician loans with no mortgage insurance are a US product. In Canada, every buyer needs at least the federal minimum down payment, and a purchase with less than 20% down needs mortgage default insurance.

Banks such as Scotiabank and RBC run their own healthcare programs, and they can be a good fit. A broker can compare those with lenders that only work through brokers, which matters when the details differ: projected income amounts, how your line of credit is counted, and how long the new-to-practice window lasts.

For most residential mortgages the lender pays the brokerage, so there is no fee to you. If a fee or a different payment arrangement ever applies, it is disclosed to you in writing before you commit.

Since December 15, 2024, first-time buyers and buyers of newly built homes can get a 30-year amortization on an insured mortgage, and the price cap for insured mortgages rose to $1.5 million. A longer amortization lowers the payment, which can help while you are still on a resident salary.