Canadian DSCR calculator
DSCR is net operating income divided by the mortgage payment. Lenders want 1.20 conventional or 1.10 on MLI Select. Enter your numbers to see where your deal lands.
DSCR is your lender's number. BrickROI builds the file.
BrickROI runs your DSCR at 1.20 and 1.10 on your real listing, with a real NOI and a real mortgage payment, the CMHC and MLI Select paths, and a lender-ready PDF your broker can cross-check. Paste a Canadian listing and see it in two minutes.
Try a dealPaste a Canadian listing. See the full analysis in two minutes. No signup to try.
How Canadian lenders use DSCR
DSCR is the ratio your lender reads first. Divide the property's net operating income by its annual mortgage payment. A result of 1.20 means the income covers the debt 1.2 times, with a 20% cushion. A conventional lender usually wants at least that. A CMHC MLI Select path is happy with about 1.10.
That smaller threshold matters more than it looks. A deal that comes in at 1.12 fails the conventional test and clears MLI Select. So the same building can be a dead deal on one path and a live one on the other. Knowing both thresholds, and testing against the path you plan to use, is the point of running the number before you talk to the lender.
The NOI has to be honest
DSCR is only as good as the NOI underneath it. The biggest swing factor is property tax, which runs off the municipal mill rate. Use the city's real rate, not a flat guess. Include a vacancy reserve and management even if you self-manage. A clean NOI gives you a DSCR your broker can cross-check without surprises.
Lift a weak DSCR
- Raise the NOI with real rent increases or lower operating costs.
- Lower the payment with a larger down payment or a longer amortisation.
- Test the 40-year MLI Select path on multi-unit deals, where it can move the ratio over the bar.
DSCR questions
What DSCR do I need in Canada?
A conventional lender usually wants a DSCR near 1.20. A CMHC MLI Select path drops the bar to about 1.10. This calculator lets you set the threshold so you can test the deal against the path you plan to use.
What goes into the DSCR?
Net operating income on top, annual mortgage payment on the bottom. NOI is the rent after vacancy and operating costs but before the mortgage. Get the property tax right from the city mill rate, because it moves the NOI and the ratio.
My DSCR is below the threshold. What now?
Raise the income or lower the payment. More rent or lower costs lift the NOI. A bigger down payment or a longer amortisation lowers the payment. The 40-year MLI Select path is a common way to push a multi-unit DSCR over the bar.
Is a high DSCR always better?
A higher DSCR means more cushion and an easier loan, but it often means more cash tied up in a larger down payment. The right DSCR is the one that clears your lender's bar while keeping your cash-on-cash return healthy.