Mortgage · Refinance
Cash-out refinance calculator (Canada).
A cash-out refinance replaces your mortgage with a bigger one and hands you the difference. FCAC says you may usually borrow up to 80% of your home’s value, so the cash is 80% of the value minus what you owe, less the penalty and fees it costs to get there.
Cash available = (home value × 80%) − mortgage balance − penalty − fees. On an $800,000 home with $400,000 owing, 80% is $640,000, so $240,000 before costs; with $8,000 of penalty and fees, $232,000 in hand. The new payment is on the whole new mortgage, and the page splits the change into re-pricing and extra borrowing.
Inputs
Your cash and new payment
Fill the form and press Calculate.
How the cash is worked out
FCAC says “You may usually borrow up to 80% of your home’s value.” Its comparison of second mortgages gives the limit as 80% of the appraised value minus your mortgage balance. A refinance works the same way with one mortgage: the new loan, including anything you borrow to pay the penalty and fees, has to stay under the limit. So the cash in hand is the limit, minus the balance, minus costs.
Worked example. Home $800,000, balance $400,000, limit 80%: the limit is $640,000 and the equity above your balance is $240,000. With a $6,000 penalty and $2,000 of fees, the most cash is $232,000 and the new mortgage is $640,000 (80%). Taking $100,000 instead makes the new mortgage $508,000. At 5.00% over 25 years that is $2,954.55 a month against $2,214.67 today at 3.00% over 20 years: $739.88 more, of which $111.75 is the new rate and longer amortization on today’s balance and $628.13 is the extra borrowing.
Costs to expect
FCAC says you may need to pay administrative fees including appraisal, title search, title insurance and legal fees, and that you may have to pay a new mortgage loan insurance premium. If you are breaking your term, a prepayment penalty is on top: FCAC says it will usually be the higher of 3 months’ interest and the interest rate differential, so run the IRD penalty calculator first. If your term is ending, there is no penalty to pay.
Refinance, HELOC or second mortgage
FCAC says you may borrow up to 65% of your home’s value with a HELOC, and up to 80% minus your mortgage balance with a second mortgage. A cash-out refinance replaces the first mortgage, so it resets your rate and amortization on the whole balance, which is why this page shows that effect separately.
Source, read 15 October 2026: FCAC — Borrowing against your home equity (page dated 15 October 2025): the 80% figure, the 65% HELOC figure, fees and the possible insurance premium. Compounding: Interest Act s. 6. Penalty: FCAC — Mortgage fees: Prepayment penalties.
Frequently asked questions
How much equity can I take out of my home in Canada?
FCAC says you may usually borrow up to 80% of your home’s value. Take 80% of the value, subtract your mortgage balance, then subtract the penalty and fees. Your lender sets its own limit and decides the appraised value.
Do I pay a penalty on a cash-out refinance?
If you break a closed mortgage before the end of its term, yes: FCAC says the penalty will usually be the higher of 3 months’ interest and the IRD. If you refinance when the term ends, there is usually no penalty. Check your contract.
What is the difference between a cash-out refinance and a HELOC?
A refinance replaces your mortgage with a larger one at a new rate. A HELOC is a revolving line against your home; FCAC says you may borrow up to 65% of your home’s value with one, versus 80% for a mortgage or second mortgage.
Will I need mortgage insurance?
FCAC says you may have to pay a new mortgage loan insurance premium. Whether you do depends on the loan-to-value and the lender, so ask before you commit.
Why does my payment rise by more than the cash would suggest?
Because the whole balance is re-priced at the new rate and amortization, not just the new money. The results split the change into those two parts.
Can I roll the penalty into the new mortgage?
This page assumes the penalty and fees are paid out of the proceeds, which is the same as adding them to the new mortgage. Your lender decides how it is handled.
Estimate only — confirm with your lender
This tool illustrates the arithmetic. It does not know your lender’s appraisal, loan-to-value limit, insurance requirements, fees or the rate you would really be offered, and every figure is one you type. Confirm everything with your lender before you sign.