The Globe and Mail reports in its Monday edition that lenders have $110-billion of outstanding loans that are ballooning because the monthly payments do not cover the interest costs. The Globe's Rachelle Younglai writes that three of Canada's major banks offer mortgages that permit negative amortization -- a product the federal bank regulator is now calling "dangerous." BMO, TD and CIBC had $110-billion in loans in negative amortization in their fourth quarter ended Oct. 31. The billions of dollars that quickly accumulated in negative amortizations has been a clear sign of the stress borrowers are facing. On their respective conference calls this week, the chief risk officers of BMO, TD and CIBC said they were taking steps to reduce the number of negatively amortizing loans. BMO's Piyush Agrawal said the bank had a "positive customer response to the outreach resulting in a reduction in mortgages and negative amortization from prior quarter." TD's Ajai Bambawale said borrowers were either making lump sum payments or moving to fixed-rate mortgages. CIBC's Frank Guse said 13,000 borrowers "took action to remove themselves from negative amortizing status for the most part by increasing their monthly payments."
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