Derrick Johnston, Mortgage Agent

Derrick Johnston, Mortgage Agent Mortgage Agent, Level 2
BRX Mortgage
FSRA #: 13463 Ready to submit a mortgage application?

https://mortgages-by-derrick.mtg-app.com/signup?refId=ede4cd97-df7e-4650-ad2d-7c8557e2ab69

06/11/2026

Wanna scale your business?

1. Think WAY bigger with your goals
2. Ruthlessly eliminate tasks that aren’t moving the needle.
3. Focus on the 20% that’s actually works.

1.15 million Canadians are renewing their mortgage this year. Many are coming off pandemic-era rates of 2% or lower and ...
06/09/2026

1.15 million Canadians are renewing their mortgage this year. Many are coming off pandemic-era rates of 2% or lower and walking straight into a rate environment that’s held at 2.25% with nowhere to go but up.
The Bank of Canada held again on April 29. Another hold is expected tomorrow.
That stability sounds like good news, but if you’re renewing and you don’t have a strategy built around your situation - your income, your equity, your timeline - you’re leaving money on the table.
Start the conversation now, not when your renewal letter arrives.
📩 DM me “STRATEGY” and let’s look at your options.
DebtFreeJourney CanadaMortgage RenewalSeason PersonalFinanceCanada TheMortgageCoach

06/05/2026

Variable is 3.6%. Fixed is 4.19%. Which one should you take?

Wrong question.

I had this exact conversation with clients this week, and I'll tell you what I told them. The rate is the LAST thing we should be talking about. Not the first.

Half a percent on most mortgages works out to about $50 a month. That's it. That's the entire prize for guessing right on which direction rates move over the next five years.

And variable can move fast. During the rate-hike cycle in 2022 and 2023, my own variable mortgage stretched to a 70-year amortization because the payment couldn't keep up with the rate. I was paying on time, every time, and going backwards.

So when someone asks me "fixed or variable?", I don't answer with a rate. I answer with questions.
→ Are you retiring in this term? → Is your income steady or commission-based? → Do you have kids heading to university? → Is there a renovation coming? → Could you sleep at night if your payment jumped $400?

If you need certainty, lock it in. The premium for fixed is the price of peace of mind. Worth every penny for the right person.
If you've got runway, stable income, and you can stomach movement, variable can save you money over the long haul. Historically it does.

But the answer is never "whichever rate is lower today." That's not strategy. That's a coin toss with your house.

If a broker leads with the rate before they ask about your life...find a new broker.

DM me and let's actually talk about your situation.

Derrick Johnston
519-636-4796
[email protected]

06/01/2026

Make 2-person open houses mandatory.

05/18/2026

Retiring this year? Read this before you talk to your bank.
I got off a call this morning with some clients where the husband's retiring this summer. Mortgage renews in August. On paper, no big deal - they've been paying it down for years, never missed a payment, great credit.

Here's the problem...

When your mortgage comes up for renewal, your current lender will offer you something. Usually not their best rate. If you want to shop around - to me, to another broker, to another bank, the new lender has to qualify you all over again. And qualifying means proving your income.
Pay stubs. Employment letter dated within 30 days. The whole package.
Retire first, and that paycheck disappears. Pension income qualifies differently, the math gets harder, the options shrink, and your leverage to negotiate vanishes. You're stuck with whatever your existing lender decides to offer you. Take it or leave it.

The fix is simple if you know about it. We submit the new mortgage application now, while you're still working. Get fully approved. Lock the rate. Then close on your actual renewal date, months later, after you've already retired.

Rates drop between now and closing? I drop your rate. Rates jump? You're protected at the rate we locked.

If you're retiring in the next 12 months and have a mortgage renewal coming up - even if it feels far away - this is the conversation to have right now. Not in August. Not the week before. Now.

DM "RETIRE" and let's map it out.

Derrick Johnston
519-636-4796
[email protected]
BRX Mortgage

05/11/2026

Bought a condo for your kid in university? You might be in the wrong mortgage category.
This came up on a client call this morning. They bought a place a few years back, daughter went out west for school, real estate market was solid, made all the sense in the world. Now she's still there, doing her degree, and her partner lives with her and chips in a bit toward the bills.
Renewal's coming up. And here's where most parents accidentally hand the bank extra money for the next five years.
If you tell the lender "my kid's partner pays rent, so it's a rental property" - congratulations. You just bumped yourself into a higher interest rate category. Rental property rates are higher than owner-occupied or second-home rates.
But here's the thing, if your kid lives there as their primary residence and it's not actually being run as an investment property, it's a SECOND HOME in the eyes of most lenders. Different category. Better rate. Lower payment for the entire term.
You qualify based on YOUR income carrying both mortgages, same way you did when you bought it in the first place. The numbers still have to work. But if they do, you're saving real money every single month for the next five years.
Most brokers won't even ask the question. They'll check the rental box, submit the file, and move on. You'll never know what you left on the table.
Helping a kid through school? Got a property they live in? Up for renewal in the next 12 months?
DM "SECOND HOME" and let's make sure you're in the right category before you sign anything.

Derrick Johnston
Mortgage Agent
519-636-4796
[email protected]
BRX Mortgage

Most people start with the project.The smart ones start with the plan.Derrick JohnstonMortgage Agent519-636-4796 getmort...
04/30/2026

Most people start with the project.
The smart ones start with the plan.

Derrick Johnston
Mortgage Agent
519-636-4796 [email protected]
BRX Mortgage

It usually happens slowly.A small upgrade here.A better finish there.One more change mid-project.And suddenly… the numbe...
04/29/2026

It usually happens slowly.

A small upgrade here.
A better finish there.
One more change mid-project.

And suddenly… the numbers don’t match the plan.

Not because the project failed.

Because the plan wasn’t built to handle it.

Derrick Johnston
Mortgage Agent
519-636-4796 [email protected]
BRX Mortgage

I’ve seen it both ways.Low income → tight.High income → still tight.Not because of spending.Because the structure scales...
04/19/2026

I’ve seen it both ways.

Low income → tight.
High income → still tight.

Not because of spending.

Because the structure scales with you.

More income doesn’t fix a messy system.
It just hides it for longer.

Derrick Johnston
Mortgage Agent
123-123-1234
[email protected]
BRX Mortgage

Everyone has that one thing they think is the problem.The car.The card.The loan.But it’s rarely just one.It’s how everyt...
04/17/2026

Everyone has that one thing they think is the problem.

The car.
The card.
The loan.

But it’s rarely just one.

It’s how everything is layered together.

Derrick Johnston
Mortgage Agent
123-123-1234
[email protected]
BRX Mortgage

Address

London, ON

Telephone

+15196364796

Website

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