The Canadian Mortgage Awards mark 20 years at Rebel Toronto on November 25
Every year, the Canadian Mortgage Awards (CMAs) do something the day-to-day grind rarely allows: they make the industry's best work visible.
On November 25, the programme enters its 20th year at Rebel Toronto, arriving at a milestone not many industry awards reach — and doing so against a backdrop that makes recognition feel more meaningful than most.
The programme is open to all mortgage professionals in Canada, including brokers, brokerages, lenders, business development managers, underwriters, agents, and service providers. Nominations are submitted at canadianmortgageawards.com/nominate.
For those who have won before, the recognition carries beyond the gala night itself. Akshay Gupta, a commercial real estate mortgage agent at Foundry Mortgage Capital Corp. in Toronto and the 2025 Young Achiever of the Year, has spoken about what the award meant in practice.
"Developers and investors need confidence in their advisor from day one," Gupta said.
"The CMA win signals that the work has been independently validated at a national level, which opens doors and shortens the trust-building process in a way that's otherwise difficult to manufacture."
That sense of independent validation is central to why past winners and nominees have consistently described the CMAs as significant rather than ceremonial.
Joe White, chief executive officer at the Real Estate and Mortgage Institute of Canada (REMIC), which sponsors the Canadian Broker of the Year award, put it plainly at the 2025 ceremony: "This award is the cream of the crop. It's something the industry needs to embrace and joyfully talk about — those helping Canadians with homeownership and financial freedom."
Reflecting on the 2024 edition, Dalia Barsoum of Streetwise Mortgages, who won both the Ontario and national Broker of the Year awards that year, spoke directly to why recognition landed differently in a difficult market.
"Especially as 2023 was a very challenging year in the industry, this award has a very special meaning right now," Barsoum said.
"Creative solutions for clients, really pushing through tough files, helping my team ride the wave and sticking together as a team were some things that I believe we did really well this year."
The human dimension of the awards has also stood out across both the 2024 and 2025 editions, with community recognition woven throughout past Canadian Mortgage Awards ceremonies.
At the 2024 gala, Carey Benvenuti of Lending Niagara – Mortgage Architects, who took out the philanthropy award, described the instinct behind her community work simply: "The gift of giving is the gift that you give yourself."
Two decades of recognising Canada's best
At its heart, the Canadian Mortgage Awards has always been about putting the spotlight on the industry's outstanding performers across a range of different categories.
The 2025 edition went bigger than ever, introducing new categories to recognise the mortgage sector's top innovator champions and reverse broker specialists, as well as broker awards recognising professionals from coast to coast to coast.
The 2026 edition carries that expansion further. Two categories that signal how the industry is changing at its edges are The REMIC Award for Finfluencer of the Year and Mortgage Tech Innovator of the Year.
Both reflect an industry that is no longer defined solely by rate sheets and deal volumes — but by the advisers, communicators, and technologists reshaping how Canadians interact with mortgage professionals.
Shawn Allen, founder of Matrix Mortgage Global and a past CMA sponsor, has described the role that gatherings like the CMAs play after periods of industry stress: "The industry went through a hard time with COVID, and now we need to show solidarity. These awards are about giving back and celebrating achievements."
What the 2026 edition looks like
The 2026 CMAs cover 26 categories in total across broker, brokerage, lender, and industry segments.
Broker categories include regional designations for Eastern Canada, Western Canada, and the Maritimes and Atlantic Canada, as well as specialist awards for commercial, private lending, and reverse mortgages.
The five-stage process runs from nomination through to the November 25 gala. After the August 14 nomination deadline, the CMA research team conducts its own review, drawing on CMP's reporting to ensure no high performer is overlooked.
Excellence Awardees are then named across all categories except Lifetime Achievement, announced publicly in September, and asked to complete detailed submissions for the judging panel.
Winners will be revealed live at the awards gala on November 25, and promoted through CMP's channels the same night.
The nomination window for the 2026 CMAs is open until August 14 at 11:59 p.m. ET. There is no fee to submit, and self-nomination is permitted alongside nominations submitted by colleagues, clients, or employers.
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