A client who paid a $12,000 premium two years ago and is now selling and buying again does not, in every case, have to pay a second full premium from scratch on the new property. CMHC's portability feature exists specifically to prevent that double payment where the client is genuinely continuing the same insured relationship on a new property rather than starting an unrelated new one, and understanding this schedule is often the difference between correctly advising a client to expect a modest premium top-up versus incorrectly telling them to expect the full new-purchase premium all over again.
The size of the credit depends on how much time has passed since the original property's closing date. Within 6 months, the client receives a full, 100% credit of the previously paid premium against the new one. Within 12 months, the credit drops to 50%. Within 24 months, it drops further to 25%. Beyond 24 months, no premium credit is available at all — though porting the mortgage's rate and term may still be possible; it is specifically the premium credit that disappears, not necessarily the ability to port the loan itself.
A straight port applies where the remaining amortization stays the same, the new loan-to-value does not exceed the LTV on the old property, and the new loan amount does not exceed the outstanding balance being carried over. Under these conditions, no new premium is charged at all — the existing insurance simply carries forward with the mortgage.
Portability with an increase applies where the new property's LTV is higher than the old one, or where the client needs additional funds beyond the outstanding balance. In the LTV-increase scenario, a premium is charged on the portion of the purchase price represented by that LTV increase, using a top-up factor that varies by LTV tier. In the additional-funds scenario, the new money is priced separately and can also trigger the blended-amortization surcharge from the previous module if the amortization on the combined balance is re-blended.
The practical takeaway for a broker: before telling a client what a port will cost, establish three things — the original closing date, so the correct point on the credit schedule can be applied; whether the new property's LTV and loan amount will exceed the old ones; and whether the amortization is being extended or re-blended. Skipping any one of these three and quoting a premium number based on assumption rather than the client's actual dates and numbers is the most common way this topic goes wrong in practice.
A client closed their original insured purchase 14 months ago and is now porting to a new property with the same LTV, same loan amount and same amortization. What premium credit applies?
At 14 months since the original closing, the file falls in the within-24-months tier, which carries a 50% premium credit — not the full credit (reserved for within 6 months) and not zero (reserved for beyond 24 months). Note also that with identical LTV, loan amount and amortization this is actually a straight port structurally, which on its own can mean no new premium is charged in the first place; the credit schedule becomes relevant specifically when a new premium is triggered, such as by an LTV or loan amount increase.
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