Big Mortgage Changes Coming for Investors in 2026

Starting in 2026, Canada’s banking regulator — the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) — is rolling out new rules that change how lenders evaluate mortgages for rental and investment properties.

Up until now, many investors could use 80% to 100% of their rental income to qualify for a mortgage, and in some cases, reuse that same income across multiple properties. That flexibility allowed small investors to scale up quickly, buying one condo, then another, and another — as long as the rent roughly covered the mortgage.

But beginning in 2026, that playbook changes.

Under OSFI’s new classification, mortgages where repayment relies heavily on rental income will be flagged as Income-Producing Residential Real Estate (IPRRE). That means lenders must treat those loans as higher risk, hold more capital against them, and apply tighter qualification rules.

Here’s the practical impact: lenders will now count only about 50–70% of your rental income toward your mortgage qualification, instead of the full amount.

You also can’t “double-count” rental income across multiple mortgage applications — meaning if you own several investment properties, you can’t reuse the same rent to qualify for your next one.

To see how this plays out, let’s look at a real-world example.

Let’s say you’re buying a one-bedroom condo for $750,000, putting 20% down, and getting a variable-rate mortgage.

At today’s stress test rate of 5.25%, your monthly mortgage payment would be about $3,580, and total monthly carrying costs (including taxes and strata) around $4,200. Even if you collect $2,900 in rent, lenders can only use part of that income to help you qualify.

In 2024 or 2025, you’d need roughly $130,000 household income to qualify for this mortgage.

Under the 2026 OSFI rules, that jumps closer to $160,000–$175,000.

That’s a 20–30% increase in required income, just to buy the same property.

So what does this mean for Vancouverites?

In the short term, these new rules will make it harder for small-scale investors — the “mom-and-pop” landlords who rely on rental income to qualify for their next property. With fewer of these buyers in the market, expect to see less competition and longer days on market in investor-heavy areas like Downtown, Metrotown, and Surrey City Centre.

That said, end-users and downsizers — people buying for themselves — won’t be affected much, since the changes only target income-producing properties.

Developers, on the other hand, might feel the pinch in pre-sale projects, as investor demand slows and they pivot to marketing more to end-users.

But this isn’t all bad news. By filtering out over-leveraged buyers, these rules could actually make the market healthier and more stable in the long run. Investors who remain active will be stronger financially and focused on true cash-flow properties, not quick flips.

For Vancouver investors, 2026 will be a new chapter in how lenders view rental properties.

You’ll need stronger income, cleaner debt ratios, and more realistic rent projections to qualify — but that also means fewer bidding wars and more opportunities to negotiate.

If you’re planning to buy an investment property next year, start your mortgage pre-approval early and work with a professional who understands both the numbers and the new rules.

Because in 2026, real estate success in Vancouver won’t just be about finding the right property — it’ll be about qualifying smart, investing strategically, and playing by a new set of lending rules.