Past-client referrals are slipping, and the fix starts long before renewal day
Canadian mortgage brokers are losing ground with past clients. Speakers at MortgageFest Canada in Toronto in September said the damage happens in the quiet years between mortgage renewals.
The share of brokers naming past clients as their strongest referral source fell to 44.66% in 2026 from 56.28% a year earlier, according to Canadian Mortgage Professional’s 20th annual Brokers on Lenders survey of 459 brokers.
Realtor referrals rose to a three-year high of 34.86% over the same period, which the survey linked to renewal anxiety.
Why do mortgage brokers lose clients between renewals?
Dan MacDonald, chief executive of Ownwell, a broker engagement platform based in Vancouver, said most homeowners hear little of substance once a deal funds.
“What we call the unmonitored market in between renewals. The banks aren’t really providing much value to their clients, nor are most mortgage brokers. So in those years between closing and their next renewal, maybe they’re getting a happy birthday email or a list of Thanksgiving recipes. They get forgotten,” he said.
“We see in our data about 1 in 10 existing mortgage holders experiences a mortgage-related event every year outside of their normal cycle. So that’s the opportunity for brokers in this market.”
The cost of ignoring that window is rising. Renewing borrowers saw their monthly payments climb by an average of $375, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s (CMHC) 2026 Mortgage Consumer Survey. That kind of pressure rarely waits for a maturity date.
Working the book before the banks do
Lenders are not waiting. Bank executives at the event described bank retention teams reaching renewing clients earlier. Elena Robinson, vice-president of residential sales at First National Financial LP, urged brokers to plan at least a year ahead.
“I think for brokers, make sure that you own the client before someone else has the opportunity to do so,” Robinson said.
Sarita Free, a mortgage agent with Mortgage Powered Financial Group in Norfolk County, Ontario, framed the same point as a daily discipline.
“Work your book. I know you’ve probably heard that from other agents, but work your book. Stay in contact with your clients. Look for opportunities where their rate might be high. Know your clients,” she said.
Tracy Valko, founder of AIMI Mortgage Collective, said the role itself has to change.
“As an industry, we got away from where it was about transactions and how many deals you did. Now it’s about focusing on that financial plan and strategy for that client, building that long-term financial relationship. So you look like a true expert and not just a rate agent,” Valko said.
The stakes are rising. The share of Canadians who obtained their mortgage through a broker climbed to 38% in 2026, according to Mortgage Professionals Canada. That means more clients sitting in broker books, years from their next maturity date.
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