What are Accelerated Mortgage Payments?

Accelerated mortgage payments are a way of paying your mortgage more often and slightly more per year so you can pay it off faster and save on interest.

Instead of paying monthly, you might choose:

• Accelerated bi-weekly – 26 payments a year

• Accelerated weekly – 52 payments a year

The “accelerated” part means your payment amount is based on your monthly payment, then split into smaller chunks and paid more frequently—so over a year, you end up making the equivalent of one extra monthly payment.

That extra money goes straight toward your principal and shortens your amortization.

KOHO Everything Can Help You Handle Faster Payments

If you’re going to speed up mortgage payments, your cash flow needs to be tight and organized.

With the KOHO Everything Plan, you get to:

• Grow your savings with 3.5% interest, one of the highest rates in Canada

• Earn a 2% cash back rate on groceries, eating, drinking, and transportation and 0.5% cash back on everything else

• There are no foreign exchange fees, so you save on international purchases and travel

• Unlimited transactions and free e-transfers

• No minimum balance required, ever

How Accelerated Payments Actually Work

Say your regular monthly mortgage payment is $1,200.

• Monthly: You pay $1,200 × 12 = $14,400 per year

• Accelerated bi-weekly:

  • Take $1,200 ÷ 2 = $600 per payment

  • You pay $600 × 26 = $15,600 per year

That’s the power of “accelerated”: same basic payment size, but more total paid in a year—roughly one extra full monthly payment.

Over time, that can knock years off your mortgage and save thousands in interest.

Types of Schedules You’ll See

Most lenders offer:

• Monthly – 12 payments per year

• Semi-monthly – 24 payments per year (not accelerated)

• Bi-weekly (non-accelerated) – 26 payments, but calculated differently so the total per year stays similar to monthly

• Accelerated bi-weekly – 26 payments based on half your monthly payment → more paid per year

• Accelerated weekly – 52 payments based on a quarter of your monthly payment → also more paid per year

If you’re choosing purely to pay it off faster, the accelerated options are usually the ones to look at.

Pros and Cons of Accelerated Mortgage Payments

Pros:

• Pay off your mortgage faster

• Save interest over the life of the loan

• Build home equity more quickly

Cons:

• Higher cash flow demand each year

• Less flexibility if your income is variable or your budget is tight