Renovation Financing Options

Only the registered homeowner on title can apply, because Financeit’s product is a home renovation loan and it completes a home ownership verification on every application. If you aren’t approved for the full amount, a co-borrower can be added to strengthen the application, and that person does not need to be on title, so a spouse or parent can co-sign. Tenants and buyers who haven’t closed yet can’t apply. If the property is held in a corporation or trust, confirm eligibility with Financeit before you apply.

You need proof of income for each applicant: your latest pay slip or most recent T4. If a co-borrower is on the application, they provide the same. You don’t mail or email documents to us. After you submit the online form, Financeit sends you an email with a secure link, and you upload the documents through that link. The approval email then shows the amount approved, the monthly payment, the term and the amortization period. If an application is declined, only Financeit knows the reason, and you can contact them directly about it.

Yes. The Financeit home renovation loan is an open loan, so you can pay it off in full or make extra payments at any time with no prepayment penalty. That makes it useful as a bridge: some homeowners finance the project, then pay the balance down once a HELOC is set up, a bonus arrives or a new rental unit starts producing income. Paying early reduces the total interest you pay. Your approval email lists the interest rate and term, so check those figures and compare them with any other financing before you accept the offer.

Your monthly payments begin once the project is complete, not when work starts. During the build, Financeit pays CarpentryBoys directly as the project moves through its stages, and your relationship with Financeit as a borrower starts after completion. The monthly amount depends on how much you borrowed and the amortization period you chose, both of which are shown in your approval email. That timing matters on longer jobs, such as an 8–12 week legal basement, because you aren’t carrying loan payments while the space is still a construction site.

Payments for construction remain tied to completed milestones. Your written agreement identifies the financed portion and any amounts you pay directly. Permit-drawing charges are handled separately. Confirm the lender’s disbursement and repayment terms before proceeding.

A HELOC is usually cheaper if you already have one or have enough equity, while contractor financing through Financeit is faster and needs no appraisal or lawyer. Federally regulated lenders cap a HELOC’s revolving portion at 65% of your home’s value, and total secured borrowing at 80%, so recent buyers often don’t qualify for enough. Setting one up can take 2–4 weeks and may involve appraisal and legal fees. Our decision rule: if you have HELOC room at a lower rate, use it; if you don’t, or need a fixed monthly payment that starts after completion, Financeit is the simpler route.

No. The federal Canada Secondary Suite Loan Program, announced in Budget 2024 as a low-interest loan of up to $80,000 at 2% for building a secondary suite, never opened for applications, and Budget 2025 confirmed it would not go ahead. The federal support that did launch, on January 15, 2025, is CMHC-insured mortgage refinancing for adding a secondary suite: eligible homeowners can borrow up to 90% of the home’s value including the new suite, on properties worth up to $2 million, with up to a 30-year amortization. Ask your mortgage broker whether your lender offers it.

Sometimes, but they change year to year and usually come with conditions. Several Ontario municipalities have offered incentives for additional residential units: Hamilton has run an Ontario Renovates Secondary Suites program offering a forgivable loan of up to $50,000 in exchange for keeping rents affordable for a set period, and other cities have offered grants or reduced permit fees. Programs often open with limited funding and close when it runs out. Our rule: check your municipality’s housing or building department before you sign, because some programs require approval before construction starts. We provide the drawings and quotes these applications ask for.