Reverse mortgage blog
Does BMO Offer a Reverse Mortgage? (2026)
General information for Canadian homeowners, not personal financial, legal, or tax advice.
Key takeaways
- BMO does not offer a reverse mortgage. Its mortgage lineup is fixed mortgages, variable mortgages, and the Homeowner ReadiLine — a mortgage combined with a line of credit.
- The ReadiLine frees up credit as the mortgage is paid down: BMO makes part of each mortgage payment available to reborrow, up to 65% of the property's value. A reverse mortgage runs the other way — no required monthly mortgage payments, and the balance grows instead.
- A ReadiLine is approved on income — the application asks for proof of employment such as recent pay stubs, and an independent broker can arrange one just as a branch can. A reverse mortgage is approved on age, home value, and location instead (how the two compare).
- Four lenders offer reverse mortgages in Canada — HomeEquity Bank, Equitable Bank, Home Trust, and Bloom. Two are Schedule 1 Canadian banks, set up under the same federal law as BMO, and the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada names both among the lenders offering them.
- Asking a branch for a reverse mortgage may get you referred to a single lender, whose own salespeople then present their own offer. A broker compares all four and handles the file personally, at no cost to the homeowner (how to choose one).
BMO does not offer a reverse mortgage. Its closest product is the Homeowner ReadiLine — a mortgage combined with a line of credit, approved based on income. Only four lenders in Canada offer them.
Most homeowners would rather borrow from the bank they already use than from a lender they have never heard of. Anyone 55 or older looking at a reverse mortgage usually starts by checking whether their own bank has one.
The challenge is not that the answer is complicated. It is that BMO’s mortgage pages list fixed mortgages, variable mortgages and the Homeowner ReadiLine, and say nothing about reverse mortgages either way.
There is a real difference underneath the product names. Both a bank line of credit and a reverse mortgage borrow against the home. Only one of them asks for a payment every month.
This page covers what BMO offers a homeowner 55 or older instead, how that product works, and which four lenders in Canada actually offer one.
Does BMO offer a reverse mortgage?
No. BMO doesn’t offer a reverse mortgage of any kind.
What it offers a homeowner who wants to borrow against the home is the Homeowner ReadiLine — a mortgage combined with a line of credit, approved the way any bank loan is approved, on income.
Reverse mortgages in Canada come from four lenders instead: HomeEquity Bank, Equitable Bank, Home Trust, and Bloom. Two of those are Schedule 1 Canadian banks — banks set up under the federal Bank Act, the same legal category as BMO. Neither one is the bank most people already deal with. Which banks offer reverse mortgages in Canada covers the wider picture across all six of the big banks.
There’s a practical reason BMO doesn’t offer one. A reverse mortgage sends money out and collects nothing back for years, which takes staff and systems built around homeowners 55 and older. BMO already offers lines of credit and refinances that bring in a payment from month one.
What does BMO offer a homeowner 55 or older instead?
The Homeowner ReadiLine. It combines a mortgage with a line of credit, and the borrowing can be split between the two portions.
Why the ReadiLine looks like the closest thing to a reverse mortgage
Of everything the big banks offer, the ReadiLine is the one that most resembles what people picture when they hear “reverse mortgage” — borrowing against the home in stages over the years, rather than taking one lump sum on day one.
That resemblance is real, and it’s where the confusion starts.
The two products move in opposite directions
Available credit on a ReadiLine grows as the mortgage is paid down. Part of each mortgage payment becomes available to borrow again on the line of credit, up to 65% of what the property is worth. Making the payments is what creates the available credit.
A reverse mortgage works the other way. There are no required monthly mortgage payments. Interest is added to the balance instead, so the balance grows while the money reaches the homeowner.
So the two look similar and work in opposite directions inside a retired household’s budget. The ReadiLine needs a monthly payment to do what it does. A reverse mortgage is built around not having one.
On a fixed income, that’s the whole question — not which product is better, but which one a household can actually afford.
Approved on income, the way any bank loan is
BMO approves a ReadiLine on the ability to repay it. The application asks for proof of employment, such as a letter from an employer or recent pay stubs.
That’s a real hurdle for many retired homeowners. Retirement income is usually lower than working income, however much the house is worth, and a paid-off home does nothing for a test that measures debts against income.
A reverse mortgage is approved on age, home value, and location instead. Income is still reviewed, just far more lightly — essentially far enough to be satisfied the property taxes are comfortably affordable, since taxes, insurance and reasonable upkeep stay your responsibility either way.
None of that makes the ReadiLine the wrong answer. For a homeowner with enough income who wants the lowest rate and doesn’t mind a monthly payment, a line of credit or a refinance often wins. An independent broker arranges and compares those too — the ReadiLine included — so one person can price both sides of the decision, and the reverse mortgage vs HELOC comparison puts the two side by side.
Who actually offers a reverse mortgage in Canada?
Four lenders, and two of them are banks.
- HomeEquity Bank — Canada’s first and largest reverse mortgage lender, lending since 1986, and the bank behind the CHIP reverse mortgage. A Schedule 1 Canadian bank.
- Equitable Bank — the first challenger, in the market since 2018. Also a Schedule 1 Canadian bank.
- Home Trust — a federally regulated trust company rather than a bank. Its reverse mortgage is available only through mortgage brokers.
- Bloom — a mortgage lender rather than a bank, licensed province by province, and lending since 2021.
They aren’t interchangeable. How the four compare on rates, fees, and who each one fits is its own page: the best reverse mortgage companies in Canada.
See what the four lenders would actually offer
A free, no-obligation estimate compares every reverse mortgage lender in Canada for your age and home — no branch appointment, no impact on your credit.
Get my free estimateWhat should you do if you want a reverse mortgage?
There are two routes, and they don’t get the same result.
Asking at a branch may get you referred out to a reverse mortgage lender. What a referral hands you is one lender’s offer, presented by that lender’s own salespeople, and tested against nothing — no second quote, and nobody asking whether a different lender would lend more or charge less.
A mortgage broker compares all four and handles the file personally: the paperwork, the lender questions, the follow-ups. It costs the homeowner nothing, because the lender pays the broker after closing. Choosing a reverse mortgage broker covers the questions that test any of them.
The first question isn’t which lender
It’s whether a reverse mortgage is the right move at all — or whether savings, a traditional mortgage, or a line of credit like BMO’s is the better way to pay for what’s planned. A broker who arranges all of those starts there, so “none of the above” is a normal answer.
Only then comes which of the four fits. A free estimate shows what each lender would offer on a given age and home, before anything is committed to.
Free Guide:The Canadian Reverse Mortgage Guide
- ✓How much tax-free cash you could unlock — and what moves the number
- ✓The real costs, rates, and fees — nothing buried in fine print
- ✓How the lenders (CHIP, Equitable Bank, Home Trust, Bloom) really compare
- ✓When a reverse mortgage is the wrong choice
Simply enter your info below and a PDF copy will instantly be sent right to your inbox.
Frequently asked questions
Is the BMO Homeowner ReadiLine a reverse mortgage?
No. The Homeowner ReadiLine is a mortgage combined with a line of credit, and it works in the opposite direction to a reverse mortgage. Available credit on a ReadiLine grows as the mortgage portion is paid down, so it depends on making monthly payments. A reverse mortgage has no required monthly mortgage payments, and the balance grows instead. The ReadiLine is also approved on income, the way any bank loan is.
What is the closest thing BMO has to a reverse mortgage?
The Homeowner ReadiLine, which lets a homeowner borrow against the home in stages over time rather than in one lump sum. But nothing BMO offers removes the monthly payment, and that is the defining feature of a reverse mortgage. Four lenders in Canada offer it: HomeEquity Bank, Equitable Bank, Home Trust, and Bloom.
Does BMO offer any mortgage with no monthly payments?
No. Every BMO mortgage requires regular payments, and the line of credit portion of a Homeowner ReadiLine requires at least the monthly interest. Removing the required monthly mortgage payment is what makes a reverse mortgage different, and four specialized lenders offer it rather than the big banks. Property taxes, home insurance, and reasonable upkeep remain the homeowner's responsibility on a reverse mortgage, the same as with any mortgage.
Can you keep banking with BMO and still get a reverse mortgage?
Yes. A reverse mortgage is a mortgage on the home, arranged with one of the four lenders that offer them, so a BMO chequing account, credit card, or investments are unaffected. One thing does change: a reverse mortgage always pays off and closes any existing mortgage or line of credit registered on the property, including a BMO mortgage or Homeowner ReadiLine, because a reverse mortgage has to be the first and only mortgage registered against the home.
Get a straight answer on your own home
A free, no-obligation estimate shows what each Canadian reverse mortgage lender would offer for your age and home — with no impact on your credit.
Get my free estimate About the author
Richard Hopkins
Licensed Mortgage Broker · M16000896
Richard has worked in the mortgage business since 2013 — first as a mortgage agent, today a licensed mortgage broker — and leads the reverse mortgage practice at Homestead Financial — Dominion Lending Centres, an FSRA-licensed Ontario brokerage (#11711) with roots in the industry since 1999 and more than 2,500 mortgages funded. More about Richard →
This article is general information for Canadian homeowners, not personal financial, legal, or tax advice. Everyone's situation is different — please get advice on your own numbers before making a decision.