Why didn’t the Bank approve me for a Mortgage?

This is one of the most frustrating things I hear from people.

“I have a good job. I make decent money. I pay my bills. Why didn’t the bank approve me for a mortgage?”

On the surface, it feels unfair. And honestly, I get why people take it personally.

But here’s the reality that no one explains very well.

Lenders are not just approving a salary or job.
They are approving a person.

The system has changed, even if the expectations haven’t

There was a time when having a steady job and a down payment was enough. You walked into your bank, had a conversation, and walked out with a mortgage.

Those days are gone.

Today, lending is heavily regulated. Underwriters are required to prove they did their homework. They have to show that they assessed risk properly, not just financially, but overall.

That means income alone is no longer the golden ticket.

How lenders actually decide who gets approved

Every lender uses the same basic framework when reviewing a mortgage application. It’s called the Five C’s of Credit, and it’s how lenders decide whether a loan feels safe or risky.

This is where a lot of people get tripped up.

Character

This is the one people don’t expect.

Character is the lender asking, “Does this person look like someone who will keep paying this mortgage when life gets uncomfortable?”

They look at employment history, career path, stability, how often you move, and whether your story makes sense from start to finish.

And yes, they will Google you and look at your social media accounts.

They are not checking to see if you went out for drinks last Friday. They are looking for patterns that suggest instability or risky behaviour. What you or your friends post about you matters.

They’re not being moral. They’re being cautious.

Credit

Credit is your track record with borrowed money.

It tells lenders whether you actually do what you say you’re going to do when payments are due.

They’re not expecting perfection. They’re looking for patterns. Late payments here and there happen. Ongoing issues without explanation raise questions.

Credit is not about your potential. It’s about your behaviour.

Capacity

Character asks whether you WILL make your mortgage payments and Capacity asks if you CAN!

Lenders calculate this using debt ratios that include required payments. They don’t know how much you spend on travel, hobbies, or lifestyle. That part is on you. They only look at what the property is going to cost you each month, your additional financial obligations like credit cards, car loans and lines of credit and if you have the income to cover it.

Capital

Capital is your down payment.

How much you’re putting down matters, but so does where the money came from and how long it’s been there. Lenders need to see a clean paper trail. Borrowed down payments that are undisclosed, large cash deposits, or last-minute money movement can derail an otherwise strong application.

Collateral

This is the property itself.

Lenders approve you and the home. A solid borrower can still lose financing if the property is risky, unusual, or hard to resell.

Not all homes are treated equally. Knowing this ahead of time can save a lot of issues once an offer has been made.

Why people feel blindsided

Most people focus on income and employment because that’s what feels tangible.

But mortgage approval is about how all five of these factors work together. Strength in one area doesn’t automatically cancel out weakness in another.

This is why someone with a great job can still be declined. And why someone with a more modest income but a cleaner overall profile can be approved.

It’s not personal.
It’s just risk assessment.

The uncomfortable truth

Banks don’t approve mortgages based on one number or one document. Income and employment matter, but they’re only part of a much bigger framework.

When lenders assess a mortgage application, they look at the borrower through each of the Five C’s. Every piece needs to make sense on its own, but more importantly, it needs to make sense together. When something looks weak or unclear, it doesn’t automatically mean the door is closed. More often, it means something needs explanation or attention.

The challenge is that lenders only see what’s on paper.

They see your credit report, your income documents, and the property details. They see what shows up in databases and searches. What they don’t automatically see is the context behind those details. Most underwriters have dozens of applications sitting on their desks. They don’t have the time to ask questions about why this or that happened. They either check a box off, or not based on the information they have in front of them.

For example, you might have a collection on your credit report from a utility company like Telus or Fortis. On paper, it looks like you didn’t pay your bill. In reality, you moved, the final bill was issued after the account was closed, and you never knew it existed. The lender can’t see that story. All they see is the collection, which can trigger an automatic decline and leave you wondering what went wrong.

Without context, the framework becomes nothing more than boxes to check or not check.

Mortgage approval is about helping lenders see the full picture. They want to lend money. That’s how they make money. But they also need confidence that the money they lend will be repaid over the long term.

When your application clearly shows how all the pieces fit together, it stops looking like a stack of documents and starts making sense as a whole.

That’s where my role comes in.

As a mortgage broker, my job is to help make sure your story is understood. To add context where it matters and bring clarity to areas that might otherwise feel disconnected. Not to spin anything or gloss over details, but to make sure the lender sees the full picture of the person behind the paperwork.

Because when the dots are connected, the framework works the way it’s supposed to.