Save Time and Money With a Fully Digital Mortgage Refinance

In collaboration with Deeded

Canada’s mortgage experience is moving to a fully digital model that reduces paperwork, simplifies refinancing, and eliminates the traditional pain points of closing a mortgage. When everything else shifted online in 2020, mortgage closings did not. Borrowers still need to take time off work, drive across town and sign stacks of paperwork in person. 

That gap became more pronounced each year as digital mortgage lenders and real estate legal platforms improved their systems. Digital refinancing and digital mortgage closings are now the new standard, paving the way for Canada’s digital transformation. The partnership between nesto and Deeded brings the entire experience together, from your mortgage prequalification to a funded mortgage.

The Future of Mortgages Is Fully Digital

Canadian borrowers now expect a simple, transparent and mostly online experience. Platforms like nesto, which helped pioneer fully digital applications, made it clear that borrowers do not want to print forms, meet at branches or wait for callbacks just to compare their mortgage options. Nesto modelled its process around clear, transparent posted rates for all mortgage offerings and a straightforward digital mortgage journey. Since launching in 2018, nesto has earned a 4.5-star rating on Google Reviews and Trustpilot. 

Deeded, founded in 2020, shares a similar mindset to nesto on the legal aspects of mortgage closings. They started with a straightforward question. Why were home purchases and refinances still stuck in an offline process when the rest of life had already moved online? Their solution was a secure digital closing platform that eliminates faxing or emailing documents and the need to drive to a lawyer’s office to wonder where your file sits in the queue. Deeded has earned a 4.9-star rating on Google. Acceptance into the Law Society of Ontario’s Access to Innovation (A2I) program confirms that its digital closing model meets high professional and legal standards.

Together, nesto and Deeded represent the complete digital mortgage refinance journey, from exploring Canadian mortgage rates and getting prequalified to signing with a lawyer online and funding your mortgage.

What Is a Digital Mortgage Closing

A digital mortgage closing is a process conducted primarily online. In a traditional closing, you would book an appointment during business hours, take time off work, drive to a lawyer’s office, wait in the reception area, sign a stack of paperwork, and then drive home. With Deeded, you log in from anywhere, review documents with your lawyer at a time that suits you, complete the signing in roughly 30 to 45 minutes and go back to your day. 

Borrowers review everything through a secure portal, verify their identity remotely, and sign during a video meeting with their lawyer. Clients often cite the convenience and efficiency of completing everything virtually, noting that the digital process allows them to close without taking time off work. 

Deeded describes its platform as an operating system for real estate closings, providing borrowers, lawyers, lenders, and mortgage teams with real-time visibility into each step, similar to a tracker that shows where the transaction stands. Deeded currently operates in Ontario and Alberta, so borrowers in those provinces can use the platform for home purchases, mortgage switches and transfers when their mortgage is up for renewal, and mortgage refinances.

Why Digital Refinancing Saves You Time and Money

Refinancing is common among Canadians who want to lower their rate, consolidate higher-interest debt, or unlock home equity for renovations, investments, or other goals. Traditionally, the refinance process could feel slow and opaque, with multiple meetings, courier deliveries, and long waits.

With nesto, borrowers complete a fully digital application, compare mortgage interest rates in real time and upload documents securely. Nesto’s client experience offers tools such as the mortgage payment calculator and clear views of total interest costs over time. This transparency helps borrowers understand the trade-offs between term lengths, fixed-rate mortgages, and variable-rate mortgages. Once your mortgage at nesto is approved, Deeded will receive closing instructions for a digital closing.

When a home appraisal is required, traditional refinance closings often take 6 to 8 weeks. With a nesto plus Deeded flow, many borrowers complete the entire process in about 1 to 2 weeks, depending on appraisal requirements and the complexity of the file. Deeded’s platform reduces back-and-forth between lawyers, clients, and lenders and can cut time spent per file by 30-60%.

Digital refinancing also provides borrowers with cost efficiencies. There are no courier charges for documents, no printing or scanning costs and lower overhead for lawyers who operate more efficiently on a digital platform. When paired with nesto’s salaried mortgage expert model, which avoids commission-driven pricing and focuses on competitive mortgage rates for clients, it delivers both time savings and real cost savings.

How the nesto and Deeded Partnership Streamlines the Process

The nesto and Deeded partnership connects approval and closing in one continuous digital journey. Borrowers start by applying online with nesto, often using tools such as the mortgage affordability calculator to gauge their budget before locking in a rate hold. Through nesto, they also see the impact of mortgage stress testing and how their file looks under current qualification rules.

Once the mortgage loan is approved, nesto connects the borrower to Deeded’s platform. Borrowers receive an invitation and create a profile. Based on client needs, with a dedicated real estate lawyer and support team. From there, they track each step of the closing in a real-time dashboard. They can review documents online at their own pace, ask questions via secure messaging, and schedule a video signing appointment at their convenience.

During the signing, the lawyer reviews key points in the mortgage contract, verifies their identity on camera and supervises the execution of all required documents. After signing, Deeded coordinates the registration of the new mortgage, the discharge of the old mortgage where needed, and fund transfers. In many cases, this funding and disbursement model allows clients to access their funds the same day or the next business day. Your fully digital experience will feel like being passed from a digital mortgage team to a digital closing team without ever leaving the couch.

Security and Compliance in a Digital World

Security, privacy and legal compliance are central to all online mortgage closings. Deeded uses bank-grade security and encryption for all documents and communications. Identity verification happens through a combination of secure ID upload and live video verification with the lawyer. Every electronic signature, login and document view is recorded in a digital audit trail, which often provides better traceability than a paper file.

Approval by the Law Society of Ontario’s Access to Innovation program confirms that Deeded’s processes meet provincial legal standards for remote signings in Ontario. Deeded works with experienced, licensed real estate lawyers, not automated systems or unregulated staff. In Alberta and Ontario, digital signatures and remote commissioning on the platform are recognized under provincial rules, meaning a digitally closed transaction has the same legal standing as a traditional in-person closing.

For borrowers, this means they can complete a mortgage renewal or refinance while staying fully compliant with Canadian law and privacy requirements.

The Benefits at a Glance

Digital closings with nesto and Deeded offer faster timelines, fewer surprises and a smoother borrower experience. You save time by avoiding travel and paper handling, gain transparency through a shared dashboard, reduce costs compared with traditional processing, and maintain security and compliance through encryption and lawyer supervision.

Benefit	Deeded + nesto Digital Experience	Traditional Process
Speed	1 to 2 weeks total	6 to 8 weeks
Transparency	Real-time tracking dashboards	Phone tag and uncertainty
Savings	Competitive legal fees and mortgage rates	Hidden legal fees and inflated mortgage rates
Security	Bank-grade encryption + LSO approved (A2I) process SOC2 at Deeded and ISO 27001 at nesto	Paper documents in the mail/courier
Simplicity	Sign from anywhere, any device	Time off work for bank and lawyer visits, locate paper documents
Convenience	24/7 document access	Business hours only
Service Quality	Hundreds of 5-star Google and Trustpilot reviews, experienced lawyers and mortgage professionals	Variable service quality
Accessiblity	Deeded serves clients anywhere in ON and AB, including remote areas Nesto funds mortgages anywhere in Canada	Limited lawyer selection based on proximity to the lawyer’s office.

Why Borrowers Are Switching to Digital Refinancing

Across Canada, more borrowers are choosing digital refinancing because it fits their real-life needs. People want to manage their finances with minimal disruption to their work and family time. Remote workers, busy parents, and people living in smaller or remote communities with fewer banks and lawyers all benefit from a model that allows them to refinance from home. One client summed up the shift: “I refinanced with nesto and closed with Deeded. It took less than a week.” That type of experience is turning digital refinancing into the default choice rather than a niche option.

Final Thoughts

A refinance is one of the most effective ways to lower borrowing costs, access your home equity, or improve overall financial flexibility. Today’s digital tools make the process smoother than ever. You can begin by exploring current mortgage rates and comparing scenarios with nesto’s mortgage payment calculator to understand how different terms, interest rates and closing costs may affect your budget. From there, you can apply online and work with a nesto mortgage professional who will guide you through qualification, documentation and rate selection.

Once you receive final mortgage approval, your file transitions seamlessly to a secure digital closing with Deeded, where you can review documents, sign with your lawyer on a video call, and complete the entire closing from home. The combined nesto and Deeded experience gives you more control, more clarity and a faster path from decision to funding, all while keeping your costs transparent. 

To take advantage of a fully digital closing experience, ask your nesto mortgage expert to use Deeded for your closing. If you are ready to explore your borrowing options, contact a nesto mortgage expert to start your digital home financing or refinancing journey with confidence.

---

Why Choose nesto

At nesto, our commission-free mortgage experts, certified in multiple provinces, provide exceptional advice and service that exceeds industry standards. Our mortgage experts are salaried employees who provide impartial guidance on mortgage options tailored to your needs and are evaluated based on client satisfaction and the quality of their advice. nesto aims to transform the mortgage industry by providing honest advice and competitive rates through a 100% digital, transparent, and seamless process.

nesto is on a mission to offer a positive, empowering and transparent property financing experience – simplified from start to finish.

Contact our licensed and knowledgeable mortgage experts to find your best mortgage rate in Canada.

---