Lunenburg, South Shore
The lenders your application actually goes to
33 residential lenders, one application and one credit check. A branch can offer you one lender's products; this is the alternative.
Which lenders does a Nova Scotia mortgage broker have access to?
Through Indi Mortgage, 33 residential lenders: 8 banks, 10 monoline and institutional lenders, 7 alternative or B lenders and 8 MIC or private lenders. One application and one credit check go to whichever of them fits. On a standard residential mortgage the lender pays the brokerage, not you.
Lenders we work with.
One application and one credit check, placed with the lender whose policy actually fits your income, your credit and the property — not the one lender a branch happens to sell.
Logos indicate lenders an application can be placed with through INDI THE INDEPENDENT MORTGAGE COMPANY LTD. They do not imply endorsement or exclusivity. Not every lender writes every file, and every approval is subject to that lender’s own criteria, due diligence and terms.
The panel, by what each group is for
The groups are not a ranking. They describe how a lender is funded and regulated, which is what decides whose policy your income, your credit and your property fit. Most files are placed in the first two groups; the other two exist so that a “no” at a bank is not the end of the conversation.
Banks
Chartered banks and the broker channels they run. B2B Bank is a bank that lends only through brokers — you cannot walk into a branch and ask for it.
- BMO
- CIBC
- Desjardins
- National Bank
- RBC Royal Bank
- Scotiabank
- TD
- B2B Bank
Monoline and institutional lenders
Lenders that do mortgages and nothing else, plus insurers that lend directly. No branches, no chequing account to open, and the bulk of insured lending in the country.
- CMLS Financial
- First National Financial
- MCAP
- MERIX Financial
- Radius Financial
- RFA
- RMG Mortgages
- Strive Capital
- Highclere Capital
- Assumption Life
Alternative and B lenders
Where the income or the credit does not fit an A-lender policy: self-employed income that looks thin on paper, bruised credit, a short time in Canada, or a property an A-lender will not take.
- Equitable Bank
- Home Trust
- Haventree Bank
- WealthONE Bank of Canada
- Peoples Group
- Community Trust
- Indigo Blue
MIC and private lenders
Short-term, equity-led lending for a file that needs time before it can move back to an A or B lender. Five of these are Atlantic Canadian, which matters on rural and non-standard property.
- Firm Capital
- MCAN Financial
- Magenta Capital
- Capital Direct
- Alternative Financing Options
- Atlantic Signature Mortgage & Loan
- East Coast Private Lending
- Graysbrook Capital
How one of them gets chosen
Rate is the part everyone compares, and it is rarely the part that costs the most. The prepayment penalty formula decides what breaking early costs — the gap between a three-months-interest lender and an interest-rate-differential lender runs into thousands on the same balance. Portability decides whether the mortgage moves with you. And some lenders simply will not take a property on a well and septic, with an oil tank past a certain age, or a mini home on leased land.
So the work is matching, not shopping: your file against 33 sets of policy, then the short list you actually choose from. That takes a 15-minute call and the document list, and a pre-approval letter follows in 1–3 business days.
Verifying any of this
Riley Oickle is an associate mortgage broker, licence 3001134, with INDI THE INDEPENDENT MORTGAGE COMPANY LTD. (brokerage licence 3000688). Both are listed on the province’s public registers — individuals and brokerages — and neither registration depends on taking our word for it.
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 about the lender panel
How many lenders can a mortgage broker send my application to?
Through Indi, 33 residential lenders: 8 banks, 10 monoline and institutional lenders, 7 alternative or B lenders and 8 MIC or private lenders. One application and one credit check cover all of them. A bank branch can offer you one lender's products.
Does applying to several lenders hurt my credit score?
No. The brokerage pulls your credit once and that single report is what lenders review. Multiple mortgage enquiries inside a short shopping window are also treated as one event by both Canadian credit bureaus, which is not true of applying separately at several branches over months.
Why would my file go to an alternative or private lender instead of a bank?
Because of policy, not a verdict on you. Federally regulated lenders qualify you at the greater of the contract rate plus 2% and 5.25%, and each one reads self-employed income, recent credit events, and unusual property differently. An alternative or private lender is normally a one- or two-year step, priced higher, used to get back to an A lender.
Do I pay more by going through a broker rather than the lender directly?
No. On a standard residential mortgage the lender pays the brokerage when the mortgage funds, so the broker fee to you is $0. A fee can apply on private and some alternative lending; Nova Scotia regulation requires it in writing before any services are provided.
Which lender is the best one?
There is no single best one — there is the one whose policy fits your file. Rate matters, and so do the prepayment terms, the penalty formula if you break early, whether the mortgage is portable and whether the lender will take the property at all.
What about a commercial or five-plus unit property?
4 units or fewer is residential and belongs on this list. Five or more units is commercial, underwritten on the building's income rather than yours, and goes to a different panel of lenders at Indi Mortgage Commercial Division.
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, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Atlantic
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Ready when you are.
Fifteen minutes on the phone tells you what you qualify for, what closing will cost in your municipality, and whether a broker or your own bank is the better route. No fee, no credit check, no obligation.
(902) 298-0218 · Monday to Friday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Atlantic