New Brunswick Mortgage Rates

Home to the Bay of Fundy and the world’s longest covered bridge, New Brunswick has Canada’s second oldest population by median age and is Canada’s only bilingual province. Located on the east coast of Canada, New Brunswick is Canada's largest Maritime province by land area, and has a population of 820,786 as of October 2022. Major cities include Moncton, Fredericton, and Saint John, with smaller cities being Dieppe, Edmundston, Campbellton, Bathurst, and Miramichi. The town of Shediac, NB is home to the world’s largest lobster sculpture and is also called “The Lobster Capital of The World”.

Francophones makeup a larger proportion of the population in the North-West and North-East of the province. 34% of New Brunswick's population speaks both English and French, with French being the first language for 32%. Moncton has the largest French-speaking population in the province, with 36% of Moncton-Richibucto speaking French. In Campbellton-Miramichi, 41% are Francophones.

New Brunswick's other major cities have a smaller francophone population, at 2% in Saint John and 4% in the capital city of Fredericton. Meanwhile, Francophones makeup 17% of Edmundston-Woodstock.

All of Canada’s Big Six Banks (RBC, TD, Scotiabank, BMO, CIBC, and National Bank) operate in New Brunswick. National non-bank mortgage lenders, such as First National, MCAP, and CMLS, can also be found in the province, which helps to keep New Brunswick mortgage rates competitive. Most New Brunswick mortgage lenders are based in the major cities of Moncton and Fredericton, but there are still lenders available all across the province.

There are 9 credit unions and 15 caisse populaires in New Brunswick. New Brunswick’s largest credit union is UNI Financial, followed by Bayview Credit Union and OMISTA Credit Union.

UNI Financial is New Brunswick’s largest credit union, with 42 branches throughout the province and close to 170,000 members. This means that 20% of New Brunswick’s population is a member of UNI Financial, or 1 in 5 people. UNI Financial was also the first credit union to become federally regulated in Canada. As a federal credit union, UNI Financial can operate nationally.

Based in the town of Caraquet on the Acadian Peninsula, UNI Financial is a Francophone credit union that serves New Brunswick’s large Francophone population. In addition to being a major mortgage lender in New Brunswick, UNI Financial also operates UNI Business, UNI Wealth Management, and UNI Insurance (AVie, Acadia Life, and Acadia General Insurance). UNI Financial outsources some of its services to Fédération des caisses populaires Desjardins du Québec (Desjardins).

A unique UNI Mortgage is the "5-in-1" Yearly Resetter Rate. With this mortgage, your mortgage term will be 5 years, but your mortgage rate will be fixed at 1-year rates that change every year of your term. This makes it act similar to a variable mortgage rate, but instead of having the rate change every time the prime rate changes, this 5-in-1 mortgage will change once per year.

Other unique mortgage options include a protected variable rate mortgage with a ceiling rate (cap). As of July 2023, UNI's current protected variable rate was 7.45%, with the ceiling rate at 7.49%. With this ceiling, your variable rate won’t go above 7.49% during your mortgage term. In comparison, in July 2021, UNI's protected variable rate was 2.80%, with the ceiling rate at 4.74%

UNI Financial's annual prepayment limit is 15% for UNI's closed mortgages. UNI Financial also has a 90-day rate guarantee for fixed mortgages, which is slightly less than the rate guarantees offered by some major banks.

All caisse populaires in New Brunswick are all part of UNI Financial (UNI Coopération financière/Caisse populaire Acadienne), although 14 of these caisse populaires are individually incorporated in New Brunswick. This includes the following caisse populaires from these regions:

Moncton:

• Caisse populaire Beauséjour
• Caisse populaire Dieppe-Memramcook
• Caisse populaire Sud Est

Bathurst:

• Caisse populaire Acadie
• Caisse populaire de Beresford
• Caisse populaire des Fondateurs
• Caisse populaire des Iles
• Caisse populaire le Lien des deux Rivières
• Caisse populaire de Néguac
• Caisse populaire de Shippagan
• Chaleur Credit Union/Caisse populaire Chaleur

Campbellton:

• Caisse populaire Restigouche

Edmundston:

• Caisse populaire Madawaska
• Caisse populaire Trois Rives
• Caisse populaire La Vallée de l’Érable

Bayview Credit Union is the largest English-speaking credit union in the province. Bayview Credit Union operates in southern New Brunswick, branching out from their head office in Saint John to serve in seven branches stretching along the Bay of Fundy.

Bayview's profit sharing program provides interest rebates for Bayview mortgage rates. You can withdraw your interest rebates once you turn 60 years of age and have been a member of the credit union for at least five years. In 2020, Bayview paid out $106,000 in profit sharing rebates and dividends.

Bayview Credit Union only offers closed mortgages, with terms available ranging from 6 months to up to 5 years. Bayview Credit Union only lends to members in Southern New Brunswick.

In 2022, Bayview Credit Union members voted to merge with Advance Savings Credit Union and Progressive Credit Union. This would double Bayview’s number of branches from 7 to 14.

OMISTA Credit Union has two branches in Moncton and two branches in Fredericton. Initially founded over 80 years ago for CN repair workers, OMISTA now is open to all residents of New Brunswick.

OMISTA Credit Union offers both open and closed mortgages. For high-ratio insured mortgages, OMISTA allows you to get mortgage default insurance from CMHC or Sagen. You can also choose to have OMISTA collect your property taxes with your mortgage payments.

Based in Moncton, Advance Savings Credit Union has four branches in the Greater Moncton Area. This includes Riverview, Petitcodiac, and Rexton. Advance Savings Credit Union is unique by having a large mortgage prepayment limit, allowing closed mortgage borrowers to prepay up to 25% of their outstanding mortgage balance every year without penalties.

Advance Savings offers a variety of specialty mortgages, such as an "Income-Flex Mortgage" for self-employed borrowers with a down payment as low as 5%. For those looking to purchase an energy-efficient home, their Keep-it-Green Mortgage provides a 25% refund of mortgage insurance premiums and offers lower mortgage rates. Meanwhile, their Up-to-95 Mortgage allows a down payment as low as 5%, while their Lots-Down Mortgage is an option for borrowers that have a down payment of at least 20% or more.

New Brunswick has had historically low housing prices, which has kept the size of mortgages in the province low. In fact, the average monthly mortgage payment in New Brunswick is the lowest in Canada. The average monthly mortgage payment in New Brunswick in 2023 was $1,191, compared to the national average of $1,984. Mortgages are slightly higher in urban areas of the province due to their slightly higher home prices, with the average mortgage payments in Moncton being $1,330, while the average mortgage payment in Saint John was $1,222 per month. That’s a lot lower than Toronto’s average monthly mortgage payment of $2,962.

New Brunswick’s more affordable housing market makes it more attractive for home buyers. New Brunswick’s average home price of $299,508 still remains comparatively affordable when looking at more expensive housing markets, such as Toronto or Vancouver.

The Greater Moncton Area historically has the province's highest number of home sales and the highest average home price. Homes outside of New Brunswick's urban areas can have average prices almost half of the average price of homes in Moncton.

Why are houses so cheap in New Brunswick?

With the cheapest homes in Canada and smaller mortgages required, why are houses still so cheap in New Brunswick? Home prices in New Brunswick have already increased by 22% over the past two years, but prices are still trailing behind the national average. A large reason for the lack of housing demand seen in other provinces is due to New Brunswick’s economy.

While New Brunswick homes might seem affordable to those in expensive housing markets, they might not be so affordable for locals. Employment opportunities in New Brunswick are relatively scarce for certain industries. New Brunswick’s low cost of living is coupled with the somewhat low incomes in the province. New Brunswick had among the lowest household incomes in the country, with the median household after-tax income in 2021 being $60,000. That’s the lowest in the country. The second-lowest was neighbouring Nova Scotia, at $60,200.

Another large factor leading to New Brunswick’s sluggish housing market is due to demographics. Since 2015 to 2020, the last year of available reports, there have been more deaths than births in New Brunswick, meaning that New Brunswick relies on migration for population growth, particularly interprovincial migration.

Historically, however, New Brunswick has faced individuals leaving the province and moving to other provinces, with most of those leaving being youth and working-age individuals. From July 2010 to June 2020, New Brunswick lost a net total of 9,127 people due to migration. While New Brunswick lost working-aged individuals, the province gained more senior individuals. In 2023, New Brunswick had the third-highest unemployment rate and the second-lowest workforce participation rate in Canada.

International migration has also lagged behind the rest of the country, as New Brunswick welcomed fewer immigrants as a proportion of their population. An increasingly large amount of international migration is from non-permanent residents, such as international students and temporary foreign workers.

Many banks and mortgage lenders offer mortgage programs to help new immigrants get a mortgage, even if they have no credit history or little employment history. New Brunswick also has a variety of immigration programs and streams, such as the New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program (NBPNP), NB Skilled Worker stream, NB Express Entry stream, Atlantic Immigration Pilot Project, and the NB Business Immigration stream, along with federal immigration programs. For a look at the province's immigration programs, visit the Government of New Brunswick's website.

Comparing rates online is the first step to getting the best mortgage rate in New Brunswick. This gives you an idea of which lenders are offering low rates, and it might also be from lenders that you haven’t heard of before.

Once you’ve found the lowest mortgage rate, it’s time to get into action. Mortgage lenders in New Brunswick offer mortgage rate holds which will guarantee you a fixed mortgage rate for 90 days to 120 days. If you’re getting close to your renewal date or closing date, a mortgage rate hold can lock-in current low mortgage rates to guarantee that you’ll be able to have today’s low rates. It can also be a good idea to work with a New Brunswick mortgage broker, which can help connect you to more lenders and access lower mortgage rates, all at no charge to you.

Mortgage brokers in New Brunswick are a valuable tool for you to use while mortgage shopping. Canada’s major mortgage brokerages, such as Dominion Lending Centres, operate in New Brunswick, helping borrowers access the lowest mortgage rates.

In New Brunswick, mortgage brokers are regulated and licensed by the Financial and Consumer Services Commission (FCNB) under the New Brunswick Mortgage Brokers Act. The four types of licenses in New Brunswick are:

• 1. Mortgage Associate: This is a person that works for a mortgage brokerage
• 2. Mortgage Broker: This is a person that works for a mortgage brokerage and can supervise mortgage associates
• 3. Mortgage Brokerage: This is a company that solicits, negotiates, and arranges mortgage loans, and can also provide advice
• 4. Mortgage Administrator: This is a company that collects and enforces mortgage payments, and send those payments to mortgage investors

Each mortgage brokerage will have a principal broker that supervises the brokerage and is the brokerage’s representative when dealing with the FCNB. New Brunswick mortgage associates have a different title in under provinces. For example, they're called mortgage agents in Ontario, sub-mortgage brokers in British Columbia, and Salespersons in Manitoba.

Most mortgage brokerages in New Brunswick are from other provinces. There are 9 mortgage brokerages based in New Brunswick, along with national mortgage brokerages with an office in New Brunswick. Moncton mortgage brokers include iQ Commercial Mortgage Strategy, Estate Mortgage, and Centum. Fredericton mortgage brokers include Front Gate Mortgages. There are no mortgage brokerages that are headquartered in Saint John, New Brunswick.

Other mortgage brokerages operating in the province are headquartered in other provinces. This includes Dominion Lending Centres, CMLS, Spectrum-Canada Mortgage Services, Mogo, IG Wealth Management, The Mortgage Group, XMC Mortgage Corporation, MCAP, Invis, First National, Mortgage Intelligence, Mortgage Architects, CBRE, Radius Financial, Citadel Mortgages, and Nesto.

Meanwhile, there are 230 mortgage brokers in New Brunswick operating under various mortgage brokerages.

Mortgages are regulated by the Financial and Consumer Services Commission (FCNB) in New Brunswick. It’s important to check to see if your mortgage brokerage and mortgage broker is licensed to operate in New Brunswick. You can search to see if they are licensed by using FCNB’s portal.

Credit unions also fall under the services of Atlantic Central, which provides services and support for credit unions in the Maritime Provinces. 8 New Brunswick credit unions are members of Atlantic Central.

In order to be a member of Atlantic Central, New Brunswick credit unions must keep at least 8% of their total liabilities as a liquidity reserve with Atlantic Central. Atlantic Central also provides funding to help with cash flow. New Brunswick Credit Union Legislation also requires credit unions to have equity that is at least 5% of total assets. This can include credit union membership shares and dividend surplus shares.

The New Brunswick Credit Union Deposit Insurance Corporation (NBCUDIC) provides deposit insurance of up to $250,000 per eligible category. Only provincially regulated credit unions have NBCUDIC deposit protection. UNI Financial, a federal credit union that operates under federal laws, has deposit insurance from the CDIC instead. CDIC deposit insurance covers up to $100,000 per eligible category.