More than 200,000 requests for mortgage deferrals sent to Canadian banks in wake of COVID-19 pandemic

by Charlie Smith on March 26th, 2020 at 3:41 PM

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With hundreds of thousands thrown out of work across Canada, it shouldn't come as a surprise that lots of people are seeking mortgage relief.

Today, the Canadian Bankers Association revealed that more than 213,000 requests have poured into the six biggest chartered banks.

BNN Bloomberg has reported that this accounts for about 4.5 percent of all of their home mortgages.

On March 22, the Cafnadian Bankers Association stated on its website that all customers "in good standing" can apply for mortgage relief if they've felt the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

There's no deadline for those seeking relie and deferrals are available for indefinite periods.

"Customers should understand that this is not mortgage forgiveness.," the CBA stated earlier this week. "Mortgage deferral means that payments are skipped for a defined period of time, during which interest which would otherwise be part of the deferred payments is added to the outstanding balance of the mortgage.

"The added interest is incorporated into the monthly payment, either when payments resume at the end of the deferral period or upon renewal at the end of the mortgage’s term."