Your bank sends a blanket renewal rate, not a check-in phone call to see how your mortgage has been working for you.

Not before you've compared it. A renewal letter is your lender's opening offer, and it's often not their best one. Signing is easy, which is exactly why so many people do it. A short review tells you whether the offer is fair, and if it is, you sign knowing that for certain.

Four to six months before your term ends. That's enough time to compare lenders, hold a rate while you decide, and switch without rushing if switching makes sense. Your lender's renewal letter may not arrive until a few weeks before your maturity date, which leaves very little room to look around.

Yes. At your renewal date you can move to a new lender without a prepayment penalty. If you're moving the same balance and not extending your amortization, you generally don't have to re-pass the mortgage stress test either. There are legal and discharge costs involved in a switch, and the new lender often covers most or all of them. I'll lay out any cost in writing first so you can see whether the savings are worth it.

Very little. I check your credit once and use that single report to compare options across lenders, rather than each lender checking separately. One inquiry may lower your score by a few points for a short time, and it recovers.

It's a mortgage and your everyday banking combined in one account. Your income is deposited straight against what you owe, so your balance drops the day you're paid and you're charged interest on a smaller amount. You still spend from the account as you normally would. The money that would otherwise sit in chequing is quietly working against your mortgage in the meantime.

Manulife Bank's Manulife One is the best known, and it's the one I work with most. A few other lenders offer accounts that combine a mortgage with a line of credit, but they don't all work the same way. I'll show you how each would behave with your actual income and spending.

They're related, but not the same. A home equity line of credit usually sits beside your mortgage as a separate account you borrow from when you need it. An offset mortgage brings your mortgage, income, and savings into one account, so every dollar you hold reduces your interest daily. It does take discipline. Because the funds are easy to access, it works best for people who keep a close eye on their spending.

A few small habits make the biggest difference. Switch to accelerated bi-weekly payments. Use your annual prepayment privilege when extra money comes in. If your rate drops at renewal, keep your payment where it was instead of letting it fall. And choose a mortgage structure that suits how you earn, which for some people is an offset mortgage. We can map out what each of these would save you.

No cost. No obligation. If your bank's offer is the right one, I'll tell you to sign it.

Then I'll tell you so, and you sign it. It happens. You'll have lost nothing, there's no fee, and you'll know your offer held up against the alternatives.