MNI BRIEF: Canada Skirting Mortgage Renewal Crash-OSFI

Canada is avoiding a wave of mortgage distress as a cohort of borrowers who took out loans five years ago amid historically low interest rates are coming up for renewal, the country's top banking regulator said Thursday.

Tighter lending standards including the B20 rule set a decade ago and the halving of loans with amortizations of 30 years or more are helping avoid a dire scenario OSFI had warned about, Superintendent Peter Routledge told reporters. 

“As we head into the next about 18 months, there is a much higher period of renewals, but we are optimistic that the system can process those renewals,” he said. Canada's most popular mortgage is a loan that resets every five years at a fixed rate. (See: MNI INTERVIEW: Carney Plan Weak On Trump Proofing, Vote Appeal)