Buyers need a Down Payment to purchase a property, but they also need to set aside money for Closing Costs associated with buying a home. Key items that make up these costs include:
Land Transfer Tax
LAND TRANSFER TAX EXPLANATION & CALCULATOR
Canadian Mortgage Housing Corporation Loan Insurance (i.e. “CMHC Fee”) + HST
CMHC FEE EXPLANATION & CALCULATOR
Lawyer Fees
You will need to retain a lawyer to close the purchase of your property. Costs will vary based on the complexity of your purchase (i.e. type of purchase, amount of purchase, complexity of financing) but a $2000 – $3000 ballpark figure is generally sufficient, including title insurance. Call and check with your lawyer to ensure the correct amount, before proceeding with a purchase.
Home Inspection
Although we know a lot about houses and condos, we are not home inspectors, and we will always recommend that you obtain a professional home inspection, which can range from $400 – $700 depending on the scope of the inspection.
Appraisal
If you are obtaining a mortgage, it is possible your bank will ask you to pay the cost of the appraisal they will require to secure your financing. Often you can negotiate with the bank to pay the cost, but to be safe you can put aside $500 to cover this.
Adjustments
Whenever you purchase a home, the lawyers will prepare a “Statement of Adjustments” that will be added or subtracted from the purchase price. This will be things like taxes – if the Seller has paid an extra couple of months of taxes, the Buyer will reimburse the Seller for the time they have paid that the Buyer will now occupy the property. This will also apply to maintenance fees. Typically things like Utilities are metered and are not factored into this.
This is not an “extra charge” – as a Buyer you will always be responsible for taxes and maintenance fees while you occupy the property, but you should have approx $1K set aside on closing for this in case you need to pay it “Up front”.
Misc
Finally, there are always incidental repairs and utility hook-up fees to consider – all of which will vary widely based on the type of home you buy. There will also be the cost to move. As your agents, we would give you guidance on this based on the home you’re purchasing, so you can budget accordingly.
