Annual Portfolio Review: 7 Steps to Find Trapped Equity

When did you last sit down, pull up every property you own, and give your entire portfolio a proper check-up?

If you are like most Canadian investors I talk to, the answer is “never” or “I kinda looked at things last year.” I get it. You are busy. You have tenants texting you, deals to analyze, a day job, and a family. The last thing you want to do is spend a Saturday buried in spreadsheets.

But here is the hard truth. Your real estate portfolio is a business. Businesses that skip annual reviews bleed money. They bleed slowly, quietly, and in ways you do not notice until it costs you tens of thousands.

I am giving you the exact 7-step annual portfolio review checklist every Canadian investor needs to run. Print it out. Block off a weekend. Grab a coffee. Do the work. Your future self will thank you.

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Why an Annual Review Matters

Most investors are great at buying properties. They are terrible at managing what they own.

Think about it. You spent weeks analyzing your first deal. You ran the numbers a hundred times. You called your mortgage broker, your accountant, and your uncle who owns a duplex in Calgary. You were meticulous.

But once you closed? You stopped paying attention. The rent comes in, the mortgage goes out, and you assume everything is fine.

That assumption costs you real money. I see investors sitting on $150,000 in trapped equity because they never check their property values. I watch people auto-renew mortgages at rates a full percent higher than what they can get by shopping around. I see landlords carry insurance policies that haven’t changed since they bought the place five years ago.

An annual review catches those leaks. It marks the difference between a portfolio that works for you and one that just exists.

Step 1: Update Your Property Valuations

Start here. Everything else flows from your property values.

Pull up each property and figure out what it is worth today. Not what you paid for it. Not what you think it is worth. Find out what the Canadian market actually dictates.

Here is how you get a reasonable estimate without paying $400 for a full appraisal on every single door:

• Check comparable sales. Look at what similar properties in the exact same neighbourhood sold for in the past six months. HouseSigma, Realtor.ca, and your local land registry are your best friends.
• Call your real estate agent. A quick call to an investor-friendly agent gets you a solid ballpark number. Most are happy to run comps if you are a serious investor.
• Check your municipal assessment. These are flawed, but they give you a baseline. If your MPAC or BC Assessment value jumped 15%, your market value probably moved too.
• Order a desk appraisal. For $100 to $200, appraisal firms give you a rough value without stepping foot inside the property.

Why does this matter? Your property values dictate your equity position. Your equity position dictates your next move. Can you refinance? Can you pull equity for your next down payment? Are you over-exposed in the Toronto or Vancouver market?

Write down each property’s estimated value. Subtract the mortgage balance. That is your equity. Add it all up. That number is the engine of your portfolio.

If your review turns up equity sitting below 75% LTV, that’s a refinance opportunity worth running the numbers on — book a free strategy call with LendCity and we’ll tell you exactly how much you can pull out and what it would cost you to do it.

Step 2: Audit Your Mortgage Renewals

This step is massive. Most investors completely ignore it until the renewal letter shows up in the mail.

Pull up every single mortgage and write down:

• Current interest rate
• Maturity date
• Remaining amortization
• Prepayment privileges
• Lender name

Sort them by maturity date. Any mortgage coming up for renewal in the next 12 months goes on your priority list.

Here is the rule: start planning your renewal exactly 120 days before maturity. That gives you time to shop rates, get pre-approvals from other “A” lenders or credit unions, and negotiate. Never just sign what your current lender sends you.

I see investors save $300 a month just by refusing to auto-renew. On a portfolio of five properties, that is $18,000 a year straight to your bottom line. That is real wealth.

Step 3: Run a Refinance Opportunity Audit

This is different from your renewal check. Here, you look at every property—regardless of when the mortgage matures—and ask: “Is there a refinance play here?”

Maybe your Edmonton duplex appreciated significantly and you have equity to pull out. Maybe the Bank of Canada dropped rates since you locked in at 5.5%, and current rates in the 3.5% to 4% range make breaking the mortgage profitable.

For each property, answer these three questions:

1. What is my current loan-to-value (LTV)? If you are below 75% LTV on a rental, you have refinanceable equity.
2. What is the penalty to break early? For variable-rate mortgages, you usually pay a three-month interest penalty. For fixed-rate mortgages, you pay the interest rate differential (IRD), which is often much higher.
3. Does the math work? If pulling $80,000 in equity costs you $5,000 in penalties but lets you buy a fourplex that cash flows $800 a month, do the deal.

Do not refinance just to have cash sitting in a bank account. But do not leave equity trapped in drywall when it needs to work harder somewhere else.

Any mortgage renewing in the next 12 months deserves more than a signature on whatever your lender sends you — schedule a free strategy session with us and we’ll shop your renewal across lenders so you’re not the investor leaving $300 a month on the table.

Step 4: Review Your Insurance Coverage

When did you last read your insurance policy? I mean really read it.

Most investors buy insurance when they purchase the property and never look at it again. Meanwhile, building materials get more expensive, you finish the basement to add a second suite, and your coverage stays exactly the same.

Here is your insurance checklist:

• Replacement cost coverage. Does your policy cover the actual cost to rebuild at today’s Canadian construction prices? Costs have skyrocketed. Update your numbers.
• Rental income coverage. If a fire shuts down your property for eight months, does your policy pay your lost rent?
• Liability coverage. Is your liability limit high enough? Carry at least $2 million for investment properties. Add an umbrella policy if you own multiple doors.
• Sewer backup and overland water. These are usually add-ons. If you lack them, you are one heavy spring thaw away from a $30,000 plumbing bill.
• Vacancy clauses. Many policies kill your coverage if the property sits vacant for more than 30 days. Know your exact terms.

Call your insurance broker. Tell them what you own. Tell them what renovations you finished. Ask if your coverage still makes sense. This 15-minute call saves you from a catastrophic gap.

Step 5: Review Every Tenant Lease

Pull out every lease agreement and check these four things:

• Lease expiry dates. Are your tenants month-to-month? Do you want them to be? Sometimes month-to-month gives you flexibility. Other times, you want to lock in a stellar tenant with a new fixed-term lease.
• Current rent vs. market rent. Are you wildly below market? In Ontario and BC, rent control caps your increases to the provincial guideline. In Alberta, you have no rent control. Know your provincial rules and price your units accordingly.
• Lease compliance. Are tenants following the rules? Look for unauthorized occupants, hidden pets, or illegal Airbnb sublets.
• Maintenance requests. What did each tenant ask for over the past year? Spot the patterns. Three plumbing calls in six months means you need to replace the pipes, not just patch them.

Use this time to evaluate tenant quality. Keep your best tenants happy. Fix that squeaky door they mentioned. Send a $25 Tim Hortons gift card thanking them for keeping the place clean. Turnover is incredibly expensive. Keeping a great tenant for one more year saves you thousands in vacancy costs and leasing fees.

Step 6: Sit Down with Your Accountant

Stop treating your tax meeting like a frantic scramble in April. Turn it into a strategic planning session in January or February.

Here is what you discuss:

• Capital Cost Allowance (CCA). Are you claiming depreciation? Should you? CCA reduces your taxable income today, but the CRA hits you with recapture when you sell. Have your accountant model both scenarios.
• Interest deductibility. Are you deducting all your mortgage interest payments properly? If you refinanced to pull out a down payment for another property, the tracing rules get complicated. Get it right.
• Corporation vs. personal ownership. If you own properties personally, ask if it is time to set up a holding company. The answer changes as your portfolio grows.
• HST/GST implications. If you run short-term rentals or own commercial properties, you face HST rules that will crush you if you ignore them.
• Capital gains planning. If you plan to sell a property this year, calculate the tax hit in advance. Find ways to time the sale or offset the gains.

A proactive tax conversation in February is worth ten times more than a reactive panic in April. Treat your accountant like a strategic partner, not a historian who just files your returns.

Step 7: Plan Your Next Acquisition

This is the fun part. You reviewed everything. You have a crystal-clear picture of where you stand. You know:

• How much equity you have
• Which mortgages need renewing soon
• Which properties you will refinance
• How much cash flow your portfolio generates
• What your tax situation looks like

Now ask yourself: what is the next move?

Do you buy another property? Do you pay down a variable-rate mortgage to boost monthly cash flow? Do you sell an underperforming condo and redeploy that capital into a purpose-built fourplex?

Make this decision deliberately. Base it on hard data, not a gut feeling. Write down your exact goal for the next 12 months. “Buy two more properties” is weak. “Acquire a legal duplex in Halifax under $550,000 that cash flows $400 a month after all expenses” is a real goal.

Putting It All Together: The One-Page Snapshot

Create a simple one-page summary of your portfolio. Keep it simple. Track the key numbers:

Update this spreadsheet every single year. You will see exactly how your portfolio grows, where your equity builds, and where you need to pivot.

When to Do Your Annual Review

Pick a time that works for you and stick to it. January or February works perfectly because you start fresh and your accountant needs your documents anyway.

The exact timing matters less than the execution. Put it in your calendar. Treat it like a non-negotiable appointment with your most important client: you.

Loop in your mortgage broker. A broker who understands real estate investors looks at your entire debt picture and spots opportunities you miss—especially around refinancing and qualifying for your next purchase.

The Bottom Line

Building a real estate portfolio is exciting. Managing one is where you make the real money.

The most successful Canadian investors I know do not necessarily own the most doors. They know their numbers cold. They review their portfolio relentlessly. They fix problems before those problems get expensive.

This checklist is not complicated. It is thorough. Thoroughness separates investors who build generational wealth from amateurs who collect properties and hope for the best.

Block the time. Do the review. Make the calls. Your bank account will thank you.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Written by

LendCity

Published

February 24, 2026

Reading time

10 min read

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Insurance Mortgage Renewal Portfolio Management Property Valuation Refinancing Tax Planning Tenant Management

Key Terms

Airbnb

Airbnb

An online marketplace connecting property owners with short-term guests. In real estate investing, Airbnb is commonly used as shorthand for the short-term rental business model, which involves higher operational demands but potentially higher returns than long-term rentals.

Amortization

Amortization

The period over which a mortgage is scheduled to be fully paid off through regular payments of principal and interest. In Canada, common amortization periods are 25 or 30 years, though the mortgage term (when you renegotiate) is typically 1-5 years.

Appraisal

Appraisal

A professional assessment of a property's market value, required by lenders to ensure the property is worth the loan amount.

Bank Of Canada

Bank of Canada

Canada's central bank that sets the overnight lending rate, which influences prime rates and mortgage costs across the country. Rate decisions directly impact variable mortgage rates and overall borrowing costs for real estate investors.

Capital Cost Allowance

Capital Cost Allowance

The Canadian tax deduction that allows property owners to write off the depreciation of a building over time, reducing taxable rental income. CCA cannot be used to create a rental loss and must be recaptured upon sale of the property.

Capital Gains Tax

Capital Gains Tax

Tax owed on the profit from selling an investment property, calculated as the difference between the sale price and the adjusted cost base. In Canada, 50% of capital gains are included in taxable income, though recent changes have increased the inclusion rate for amounts over $250,000.

Cash Flow

Cash Flow

The money left over after collecting rent and paying all expenses including mortgage, taxes, insurance, maintenance, and property management.

Credit Union

Credit Union

A member-owned financial cooperative that provides banking services including mortgage lending. Credit unions often have more flexible lending policies for real estate investors than major banks, particularly for borrowers who have exceeded conventional lending limits.

Depreciation

Depreciation

An accounting method that allocates the cost of a building over its useful life as a tax deduction. In US real estate, depreciation reduces taxable rental income. The Canadian equivalent is Capital Cost Allowance (CCA).

Down Payment

Down Payment

The upfront cash payment when purchasing a property. For 1-4 unit investment properties, minimum 20% down is required. 5+ unit multifamily can use CMHC MLI Select with lower down payments, and house hackers can put as little as 5% down on owner-occupied 2-4 plexes.

Hover over terms to see definitions. View the full glossary for all terms.