[verelo]

One other thing to consider is brand reputation. Most lenders, big bank lenders at least, don’t want their brand being the one that took a family home away. Often before things get real bad they will offer to break the term and let you refinance somewhere else.

[wbl]

In the US 30 fixed have no prepayment penalty.

[verelo]

That's a good deal! In Canada pre-payments often result in fees, which isn't ideal. Good(ish?) news is the banks will let you transfer out with no fee (or a reduced fee) if they want to remove your risk from their portfolio.