A mortgage investment corporation is a company that pools money from investors and lends it out as mortgages. For a borrower, a MIC is a private lender with more structure than an individual: a lending policy, an underwriting process and a portfolio of loans rather than a single investor’s savings.
The MICs listed here describe the regions, property types and loan positions they lend on. Most take applications through licensed mortgage brokerages rather than from the public directly, so a broker is often the practical route to one.
We are a registered mortgage broker in the Province of Manitoba. Our licence allows for us to act as mortgage brokers, mortgage lenders, and mortgage administrators. We manage 2 small MICs a…
A MIC is a structure set out in federal tax law. Provided it meets the conditions on who its shareholders are and what it invests in, it pays out its income to shareholders and is not taxed on it at the corporate level. That is why MICs exist in the form they do: they are a way for investors to hold a diversified pool of mortgages rather than lending on a single property themselves.
The money is lent mostly on residential property, typically as short-term first and second mortgages, and sometimes on construction or commercial projects. The borrower deals with the MIC or its administrator, not with the individual investors.
From a borrower’s side a MIC behaves like an institutional private lender. The decision rests on the property and the equity in it, the term is short, and the exit matters. Because a MIC lends from a pool and has a written policy, its answers tend to be more consistent than an individual lender’s, and its pricing is often somewhat lower.
The costs follow the private model: an interest rate above bank and alternative lenders, a lender fee, a brokerage fee where a broker is involved, and your own legal and appraisal costs. All of these should be disclosed in writing before you sign.
Many people searching for MICs are investors rather than borrowers. MIC shares are generally sold under securities law exemptions, which means the offering documents, not a prospectus, are what you rely on. Returns come from mortgage interest and fees, and they depend on the loan book: its positions, its loan-to-value, its geography and how it handles loans that go bad.
This directory is for borrowers looking for a lender and does not assess MICs as investments. If you are considering investing, read the offering memorandum, ask how defaults have been handled, and take advice from someone registered to give it.
A company that pools investors’ money and lends it as mortgages, set up under a federal tax structure that lets it pass its income to shareholders without paying corporate tax on it, provided it meets conditions on its shareholders and investments. For borrowers, it acts as an institutional private lender.
Broadly, yes. A MIC is one kind of private lender. The practical differences are that a MIC lends from a pool under a written policy, so it tends to be more consistent and often slightly cheaper than an individual lender, and it usually works through licensed mortgage brokerages.
Some MICs accept applications from the public, but most take files through licensed mortgage brokerages. A broker who works with several MICs and private lenders can compare offers on the same file, which is usually worth more than going to one directly.
Investors are paid from the interest and fees borrowers pay, after the MIC’s costs and any losses. Returns vary with the loan book, first or second positions, loan-to-value, region and property type, and are not guaranteed. This site does not assess MICs as investments.
Look up the MIC, or the brokerage or administrator it works through, on the provincial regulator’s public register, in Ontario, FSRA licenses mortgage brokerages and administrators. Investors should also check the securities regulator. Listings here are self-reported and not checked by this site.
