Deposit, down payment, closing costs, conditions and timelines — the parts of a first purchase that surprise buyers, explained plainly.
A first purchase is mostly a sequence problem. Do things in the right order and it is manageable; do them out of order and you end up bidding on homes you cannot finance, or waiving conditions you did not understand.
Get pre-approved before you tour
A current pre-approval sets your real ceiling and makes your offer credible to a listing agent. Without it you are guessing, and in a competitive segment a guess is what loses the property.
Deposit is not down payment
The deposit accompanies your offer and is credited towards your purchase at closing. The down payment is the larger sum arranged with your lender. Buyers regularly conflate the two and get caught short on timing.
Budget for closing costs
- Land transfer tax (Ontario, plus any applicable municipal charge)
- Legal fees and disbursements
- Home inspection
- Title insurance
- Adjustments for prepaid property tax or condo fees
- Moving costs and any immediate repairs
Conditions protect you
Financing and inspection conditions exist for a reason. In heated segments buyers are sometimes pressured to waive them; that is a risk decision, not a formality, and it should be made deliberately with the numbers in front of you.
Waiving an inspection on a hundred-year-old Ottawa home is a very expensive way to win a bidding war.
Choose the area before the house
Commute, transit, schools and parking are fixed once you buy; paint is not. Read the Ottawa area guide and the neighbourhood pages for Westboro, Kanata, Barrhaven, Nepean and Orléans, then start a home search with your criteria.