What Canada's top brokers are learning, doing, and debating next week in Toronto
Canada's largest mortgage industry event opens its doors at the International Centre in Toronto on September 23 and 24, bringing together more than 2,000 brokers, lenders, executives, and technology innovators for two days of sessions built around the pressures defining the Canadian mortgage market this year.
The event — an evolution of the former Canadian Mortgage Summit — arrives at a moment when the industry is navigating its biggest renewal cycle in recent memory.
Canadian residential mortgage debt has reached $2.3 trillion, the broker channel now commands a 33% market share, and 2026 is set to be the largest renewal year in recent history, with 1.15 million mortgages coming up for renewal.
Against that backdrop, organisers have structured the two-day programme around hard, practical content across two concurrent stages.
Attendance is free. Registration is available at mortgagefest.ca.
What's on at MortgageFest Canada
Day One opens with a keynote from Derek Burleton, vice president and deputy chief economist at TD Bank Group, who will map rate and housing activity through the next 24 months.
A Summit Stage panel featuring senior representatives from TD Bank, BMO BrokerEdge, First National Financial LP, and National Bank will follow, examining where prime lenders are currently approving deals, where they are pulling back, and how deal structure affects approval speed and outcomes.
Two AI-focused sessions feature prominently across both days. On Day One, Dalia Barsoum, co-founder and chief executive of Wisely AI Technologies and founder of Streetwise Mortgages in Canada, walks through real workflows her brokerage has built across the full mortgage lifecycle, from lead management to renewals.
On Day Two, a panel featuring Tracey Robinson of Finastra examines where AI is already shifting deal flow and where human judgment stays essential.
Joe White, founder and chief executive of REMIC, will present a session on Day One drawing on a national survey of 1,910 Canadians, examining how many are already turning to AI for mortgage advice, and the compliance exposure that creates for licensed professionals.
Discover how an award-winning brokerage is using AI across lead management, underwriting support, compliance, marketing, and renewals, while keeping human expertise at the center of the process at #MortgageFest Canada!
— Canadian Mortgage Professional Magazine (@CMPmagazine) September 11, 2026
Register: https://t.co/qK68QcxmrQ pic.twitter.com/Ji1k0CxI5k
The renewal wave and AI in the broker channel
The Insights Stage, running parallel to the Summit Stage across both days, is designed around interactive broker-led formats.
Sessions cover tax structuring, lead generation, compliance, and succession, with each session structured to deliver a concrete takeaway — a checklist, a framework, or a decision — rather than a traditional presentation format.
The afternoon programme on Day One includes a panel on alternative lending featuring senior figures from WealthONE Bank of Canada, EQ Bank, Haventree Bank, and MCAN Financial.
A closing spotlight session will bring together prominent brokers Ron Butler of Butler Mortgage Inc., Vince Gaetano of OwlMortgage Inc., and Tracy Valko of Valko Financial Ltd. and DLC AIMI Mortgage Collective Group to share where they see the market heading into the final quarter of 2026.
Day Two opens with a keynote from Jessica Holmes, a comedian and motivational speaker who has shared stages with Ellen DeGeneres, Jerry Seinfeld, and Oprah Winfrey, and who will address resilience in a high-pressure market environment.
Sessions on Day Two include a panel on private and mortgage investment corporation (MIC) lending, a session on serving new-to-Canada borrowers, and a Tech Talk on file efficiency, led by Swish Goswami, chief executive and co-founder of BrokerPlus, walking through how brokers are cutting submission time significantly.
A session from Lindsay Zwart, director of mortgage and housing solutions at Equifax Canada, will also walk brokers through the new 2026 credit report format and its implications for underwriting.
Women in Mortgage Summit Canada
Running alongside Day Two is the Women in Mortgage Summit Canada, a dedicated one-day event bringing together more than 500 women across the industry.
Three Power Panels run across the day, each built around challenges the mortgage community identified as most pressing for 2026, including rate uncertainty, the renewal wave reshaping client books, and buyer hesitation.
Speakers include Sherry Cooper, chief economist at Dominion Lending Centres; Michele Steko, vice president of national broker relations at Sherwood Mortgage Group; and Elena Robinson, vice president of residential sales at First National.
The event has been pre-approved by Mortgage Professionals Canada for a total of 6.5 continuing education (CE) units in the Professional Development Category and 0.50 CE units in the Compulsory Category for 2026.
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