When Ownwell shows a savings opportunity, it’s answering a simple question:
Is it actually worth breaking this mortgage?
Cost assumptions play a big role in that answer.
A cost assumption determines how the penalty and closing costs are handled—whether they’re paid upfront or added to the mortgage. That choice directly affects the total cost of breaking and the net interest savings.
In practice, this means the same client can have different outcomes depending on how those costs are structured.
Different structures can increase or decrease savings, and even determine whether an opportunity exists.
Why Cost Assumptions Matter
Breaking a mortgage isn’t just about getting a lower rate—it’s about how the costs are handled.
When you change the cost assumption, you’re changing things like:
How much the client needs to pay upfront
What their new monthly payment looks like
How much balance they carry into renewal
And ultimately, how much they actually save
In some cases, that change is enough to:
Turn a deal from viable → not worth it
Or bring an opportunity into view that wasn’t there before
The Three Cost Assumptions
There are three ways costs can be handled. Each one represents a different trade-off between upfront cash and long-term cost.
All costs paid out of pocket (Default)
In this scenario, the client pays:
The full penalty
All closing costs
…upfront at closing.
Nothing is added to the mortgage, so the new balance stays the same.
This usually results in:
The lowest long-term cost
But the highest upfront cash requirement
Up to $3,000 added to mortgage
Here, up to $3,000 of the total cost (penalty + closing costs) is added to the mortgage, and the rest is paid upfront.
This option exists because of Canadian mortgage rules:
You can only roll up to $3,000 into a switch
Staying within that limit preserves insurability and switch pricing
In practice, this creates a middle ground:
Less cash required upfront
Without fully increasing the long-term cost
If upfront cost is a blocker, some brokers cover part of the penalty to make the deal workable.
Just make sure the numbers still work on your side!
All costs added to mortgage
In this scenario, the entire cost of breaking—penalty and closing costs—is added to the new mortgage.
That means:
No cash is required upfront
But the client carries a higher balance going forward
This is often the easiest option short-term, but:
It increases the full cost over the lifetime of the mortgage
What Actually Changes When You Adjust It
When you switch cost assumptions, Ownwell recalculates the entire scenario and can significantly affect the outcome.
You’ll see changes in:
Net interest savings
Monthly payment
The cost of breaking breakdown
The remaining balance at renewal
How the “Cost of Breaking” Works
Every opportunity accounts for the full cost of breaking the mortgage, not just what’s paid today.
That includes:
The penalty
Closing costs
Any interest on costs added to the mortgage
Any remaining balance carried into renewal
This is what makes the net savings number meaningful—it reflects the real financial outcome, not just a surface-level comparison.
How This Affects Opportunities
Ownwell surfaces opportunities based on net interest savings of $2,000 or more.
Because cost assumptions affect net savings, changing them can:
Increase or decrease the savings
Cause an opportunity to appear or disappear
Change how the opportunity is presented in the email
The underlying model is designed to stay consistent regardless of how costs are structured—so what you’re seeing reflects a true outcome either way
If a deal doesn’t work under one assumption, try another.
A different structure can make it viable.
Default vs Per-Opportunity Assumptions
You can set a default cost assumption in your Settings.
That default:
Applies across all opportunities
Acts as your starting point
If you change it:
All opportunities are recalculated
Total savings across your dashboard can shift
But you’re never locked in—you can still adjust the assumption on any individual opportunity.
How to Use This in Practice
When you’re reviewing an opportunity, don’t just accept the default scenario.
Instead:
Start with the default
Ask what the client can realistically do:
Can they pay upfront?
Do they prefer lower payments?
Adjust the cost assumption
Compare outcomes
Use the version that actually fits their situation
The goal is to structure the deal in a way the client can actually move forward with.