Lunenburg, South Shore
HELOC & home equity calculator
Your equity, the room the 65% and 80% limits leave for a line of credit, and what a draw costs each month, beside the same amount borrowed as a mortgage.
How much can I borrow on a HELOC in Canada?
The lesser of two federal limits: 65% of your home’s value for the line of credit itself, and 80% of the value less everything already secured on the home. On the August 2026 Nova Scotia average of $467,585 with a $250,000 mortgage, that is $124,068. The lender’s appraisal, your income and your credit decide the rest.
Calculate your home equity and HELOC room
Use it as a home equity calculator, from the value and what you owe, or as a home equity line of credit calculator for the draw you have in mind. The limits and the arithmetic are the same anywhere in Canada; the starting home value is Nova Scotia’s average.
Home equity calculator example: the Nova Scotia average home
The same $467,585 home at six mortgage balances. Owe less than $70,138, 15% of the value, and the 65% limit on the line itself sets the room; above that the 80% limit on everything secured does, and a refinance reaches no further than a line of credit.
| Mortgage owing | HELOC room | Set by | Your equity | Share of value | Refinance cash |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No mortgage | $303,930 | 65% limit | $467,585 | 100% | $374,068 |
| $50,000 | $303,930 | 65% limit | $417,585 | 89.31% | $324,068 |
| $150,000 | $224,068 | 80% limit | $317,585 | 67.92% | $224,068 |
| $250,000 | $124,068 | 80% limit | $217,585 | 46.53% | $124,068 |
| $350,000 | $24,068 | 80% limit | $117,585 | 25.15% | $24,068 |
| $400,000 | $0 | No room | $67,585 | 14.45% | $0 |
At $400,000 owing the home still holds $67,585 of equity and none of it can be borrowed from a federally regulated lender: the last 20% of the value stays in the home. How a home equity line works in Nova Scotia →
Go deeper
The detail, if you want it
The 65% and 80% limits, and where they come from
Two federal rules set the room at a bank or any other federally regulated lender. The line of credit itself, the part you can draw, repay and draw again, can be no more than 65% of the home’s value: that is OSFI’s Guideline B-20. Everything secured on the home together can be no more than 80% unless the loan is insured: that is section 418 of the Bank Act.
The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada states both for borrowers. So the room is the lesser of two figures: 65% of the value, and 80% of the value less what is already secured. On the $467,585 average home those are $303,930 and, with $250,000 owing, $124,068.
The value is the lender’s appraisal, not the assessment. A provincially regulated credit union follows its own regulator’s rules, which may differ. Sources verified October 3, 2026.
HELOC payment calculator: what each draw costs
A HELOC payment is interest on what you have drawn: the balance times the rate, divided by twelve. It moves when the lender’s prime rate moves, and it never reduces what you owe. The same amount as a mortgage costs more each month because every payment repays some of it.
| Amount drawn | Line, a month | After the rise | Mortgage, a month | Line interest, 5 years | Mortgage interest, 5 years | Mortgage still owing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $10,000 | $45.42 | $53.75 | $55.07 | $2,725 | $2,077 | $8,772 |
| $25,000 | $113.54 | $134.38 | $137.67 | $6,813 | $5,191 | $21,931 |
| $50,000 | $227.08 | $268.75 | $275.35 | $13,625 | $10,383 | $43,862 |
| $100,000 | $454.17 | $537.50 | $550.70 | $27,250 | $20,765 | $87,723 |
HELOC, refinance or second mortgage. After 5 years of interest-only payments the line still owes every dollar drawn. A refinance gets mortgage pricing but replaces your mortgage, so a prepayment penalty can apply mid-term. A second mortgage leaves the first alone and costs more than either: enter its quoted rate above to add the row.
Readvanceable mortgages, the stress test and a variable rate
Readvanceable mortgage. A mortgage and a line of credit registered under one charge, where the line’s limit rises as the mortgage is paid down. Under OSFI’s June 30, 2022 advisory, borrowing above 65% of the value has to be amortized and cannot be re-borrowed as it is repaid. It is the product the Smith Manoeuvre calculator models.
Stress test. A HELOC is stress-tested. At a federally regulated lender you qualify at the greater of the contract rate plus 2% and 5.25%: 7.45% on a line priced at 5.45%. Ask how the lender qualifies the limit you request before choosing its size.
Variable rate. A HELOC rate is the lender’s prime rate plus a margin, so it changes when prime does. Prime has sat 2.20 percentage points above the policy rate since the banks widened the spread in 2015; a change in the policy rate moves prime the same day or the next. On $50,000, each 1-point move is $41.67 a month.
Why a broker
Licensed, independent, paid by the lender
- Licensed in Nova Scotia Associate broker 3001134, verifiable on the provincial register
- $0 broker fee On a standard residential mortgage the lender pays, not you
- Banks, credit unions, monolines One application, one credit check, placed with the lender that reads your file best
- Every part of the province Bedford office, remote process: Yarmouth to Sydney, the same four steps
Questions people ask
How much can I borrow with a HELOC in Canada?
Up to 65% of your home’s value on the line of credit itself, and no more than 80% of the value across the mortgage, the line and any other loan secured on the home. The room is the lesser of the two. On a $467,585 home with $250,000 owing it is $124,068; with nothing owing it is $303,930.
How is a HELOC payment calculated?
Interest is charged only on what you have drawn, and the usual minimum payment is that interest: the balance times the rate, divided by twelve. On $50,000 at 5.45% it is $227.08 a month, and $268.75 if the rate rises 1 point. An interest-only payment never reduces the balance, so after 5 years you would have paid $13,625 and still owe $50,000.
Is a HELOC cheaper than refinancing?
The payment is lower and the cost is usually higher. On $50,000, a line of credit at 5.45% is $227.08 a month and $13,625 of interest over 5 years, with nothing repaid. The same amount as a mortgage at 4.45% over 25 years is $275.35 a month and $10,383 of interest, with $43,862 left owing. Both rates are examples, and breaking a mortgage to refinance can carry a penalty.
Do I have to pass the stress test for a home equity line of credit?
Yes, at a federally regulated lender such as a bank. You qualify at the greater of the contract rate plus 2% and 5.25%; on a line priced at 5.45% that is 7.45%. Ask the lender how it counts an unused line when you apply for other credit later.
What is the difference between home equity and HELOC room?
Equity is the home’s value less everything secured on it. HELOC room is the part of that equity a lender can advance as a line of credit. On a $467,585 home with $250,000 owing, the equity is $217,585 and the room is $124,068, because the last 20% of the value has to stay in the home.
Does this HELOC calculator work outside Nova Scotia?
Yes. The 65% and 80% limits, the stress test and the interest arithmetic are federal, so it works as a HELOC calculator anywhere in Canada. Only the starting home value is Nova Scotian: the August 2026 provincial average of $467,585. Legal and registration costs, which the calculator does not count, differ by province.
Still unsure? Ask me directly.
If your question isn't here, your situation is probably specific. Fifteen minutes on the phone beats reading another page, and nothing is pulled on your credit.
(902) 298-0218 · Monday to Friday, 8:00 am to 10:00 pm Atlantic
Equity on paper is not an approval.
Send the home’s value, what you owe and what the money is for. You get back which structure is cheapest over the time you need it, a line, a refinance or a second mortgage, with the arithmetic shown.
(902) 298-0218 · Monday to Friday, 8:00 am to 10:00 pm Atlantic