Most brokers spend a career doing whatever walks in. The ones who earn most pick a lane, or two, and become the person that file gets referred to.
Written by A.I.M.I. Collective Mortgage Group, Brokerage editorial team
Published September 2026 · Last reviewed 11 September 2026
A licence lets you arrange any mortgage. It does not tell you which ones to become known for. Most new brokers start with whatever their friends, family and first referral partners send, which is right for year one. By year two the brokers who grow fastest have started to specialise, because a specialist gets the referral, the repeat client and the better lender relationship. Here are the eight paths we see brokers take, what each involves, who it suits, and what we have in place to support it.
The foundation: first time buyers, movers, refinances and renewals with A lenders. Suits brokers who like people and volume. Every other path grows out of this one. Supported by weekly lender training, top tier status and head office processing. Start with the document checklists.
Multi family, mixed use, owner occupied, land and construction. Bigger files, borrower paid fees, clients who repeat. Suits brokers who like structure and patience. Supported by the Deal Desk's commercial underwriter and the Commercial Matchmaking Forum. Read why commercial scales a book.
B lenders, MICs and private capital for files that do not fit at A. Suits brokers who can explain a hard truth kindly and think in exits. Supported by the Deal Desk private and alternative category and the private lending matchmaking forum. Read the A, B and private tiers.
Insured new to Canada programs, alternative credit references, documented overseas down payments. Suits brokers with a second language and a community. Supported by the new to Canada checklist and lenders who run the programs.
Two years of NOAs, add backs, bank statement programs and the B route when the returns do not show enough. Suits brokers who read financial statements without flinching. Supported by the self employed checklist and the Deal Desk for the ones that need structure.
Draw mortgages, builder files, land to build, quantity surveyor reports and interest reserves. Suits brokers with builder or developer relationships. Supported by the Deal Desk construction category and private construction lenders at our forums. Read the deal types.
Rental properties, portfolio schedules, rental offsets, the fifth unit that turns a file commercial. Suits brokers who like spreadsheets and repeat business. Supported by the rental checklist, the DSCR tool and the multi family route through the Deal Desk.
Not glamorous, the most profitable path there is. Calling clients 120 days before maturity, switching or holding, and catching the ones who no longer qualify at A. Suits every broker with a database. Read the 2026 renewal playbook.
Pick the path that matches the clients already around you. A broker with a builder in the family starts with construction. A broker from a newcomer community starts there. A residential broker with three investor clients is already on the investor path. Specialising is not leaving residential behind, it is adding a second door for referrals.
Answer four quick questions and we will email you the three guides that fit where you are today.
Top tier lender status from day one, weekly lender training, compliance and deal processing at head office, the broker portal, and the Deal Desk for the files you have not placed before. What you provide is the decision to become known for something. Read what your first 90 days can look like and how volume grows after that.
We onboard licensed brokers only, so the licence is yours to earn before we can help with anything else. After that you get weekly lender training, a team chat where new and experienced brokers answer around the clock, and senior brokers who will work your first files alongside you. There is no scripted programme with a guaranteed timeline. There is a room full of people who pick up.
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Bring your first ten clients, or your first ten ideas, to a discovery call and we will tell you which path they point at.