HAMILTON, Ontario – October 05, 2026 – A CHIP reverse mortgage review has been published by an independent Ontario mortgage broker, written for homeowners aged 55 and over who have seen the advertising and want an assessment from someone who does not work for the lender.
The CHIP Reverse Mortgage is Canada’s original reverse mortgage, launched in 1986 by HomeEquity Bank, which still holds the large majority of all reverse mortgage balances in the country. That history is the reason most Canadians who have heard of a reverse mortgage at all have heard of CHIP.
The review makes one point that the advertising does not. CHIP is not a single product. It is a family of them, and they are built for different situations: the flagship CHIP Reverse Mortgage, the version almost all the advertising refers to; a version designed to pay out steady advances over time rather than one lump sum; a version aimed at a shorter commitment, where the early repayment terms differ; and a version arranged alongside a home purchase.
“CHIP is the name everyone knows, and being the oldest is worth something. But it is four different products, not one, and the version a homeowner is shown is not always the version that fits them,” said Richard Hopkins, Mortgage Broker, licence M16000896.
A homeowner who asks for CHIP and is given the flagship product may be given the right one. The review’s argument is that this should be a decision rather than a default.
It also separates two numbers that are easy to confuse. The rates HomeEquity Bank advertises are new-client specials. The posted rate schedule, which is the one an existing client resets to at renewal, is a different and higher set of numbers. The review explains why a homeowner comparing offers should ask which of the two they are being quoted, and what their own renewal will be measured against. Current figures are published and dated on the review page itself rather than in this release, because reverse mortgage rates move.
Two further points the review raises for anyone comparing lenders: the advertised set-up cost includes the lender’s own closing legal work, which is not true of every lender and changes the real comparison; and HomeEquity Bank states plainly that later advances are not guaranteed, which matters a great deal to a homeowner planning to draw money in stages.
Reverse mortgages let Canadian homeowners aged 55 and over borrow against their home with no required monthly mortgage payments, repaid when the home is sold, when the owners move out, or after the last borrower passes away. A borrower can never owe more than the home is worth when it is sold, provided the terms of the mortgage are kept.
The review is written by Richard Hopkins, a Mortgage Broker (licence M16000896) with Dominion Lending Centres Homestead Financial, an independent Ontario brokerage licensed by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (brokerage licence #11711). The brokerage arranges reverse mortgages with every Canadian lender and is paid by the lender the client chooses, after the mortgage funds.
The full review is free to read at:
About Dominion Lending Centres Homestead Financial
Dominion Lending Centres Homestead Financial is an independent mortgage brokerage in Hamilton, Ontario, licensed by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (brokerage licence #11711) and in business since 1999. More than 1,200 Ontario families have arranged a mortgage through the brokerage. Independently Owned and Operated. Richard Hopkins, Mortgage Broker (licence M16000896), leads its reverse mortgage practice.
Media Contact
Company Name: Homestead Financial
Contact Person: Richard Hopkins
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Phone: 905-690-6068
Address:26 Glaceport Ave
City: Dundas
State: Ontario
Country: Canada
Website: https://reversemortgagebroker.ca/chip-reverse-mortgage-review/?utm_source=abnewswire&utm_medium=press_release&utm_campaign=pr05-chip-review