That has led to a rare situation in Canada where banks are seeing mortgage amortizations getting extended beyond 30 years, sparking calls from regulators to take immediate action to mitigate risks.
For the other four banks, mortgages amortizing under 25 years account for a half to nearly three quarters.
Scotiabank's Canada head Dan Rees said the bank was now being more "disciplined with regards to customer selection" for new mortgages.
Still, the risks remain elevated as consumers are struggling to make monthly payments due to the rising cost of living.
TD Bank's Canada personal banking head Michael Rhodes told analysts this week that "a meaningful number of customers" are making the changes.
Persons:
Mark Blinch, Hratch Panossian, Dan Rees, Brian Madden, Michael Rhodes, Dave McKay, Nivedita Balu, Denny Thomas, Stephen Coates
Organizations:
REUTERS, Rights, Canada's, Reuters, CIBC, Bank of Nova, Investment, Thomson
Locations:
Toronto, Milton , Ontario, Canada, Bank of Nova Scotia