The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday edition the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions is right to be considering a possible revision of its mortgage guidelines, in particular, the way that it deals with uninsured mortgages with long amortization periods. An unbylined item in The Globe's Comment page notes that mortgage insurance is mandatory for residential mortgages when the down payment is less than 20 per cent of the residence's value. Bank lenders take on real risk when they hold uninsured mortgages. The OSFI is thinking about limiting all housing mortgages to amortization periods of 25 years. The Canadian housing market could have a "soft landing." A hard landing would mean that real-estate values would substantially fall. Canadian banks have healthy capital positions. There continues to be a substantial case that housing prices are still high by comparison to residential rents, hence, the emergence of some investors who are "shorting" Canadian bank shares. The Globe says the folks at the OSFI are prudent and will consult discreetly with the major lenders before taking any action. The Globe says the OSFI is right to be thinking intently about uninsured mortgages.