Buying a Home in Ontario: Complete Guide to Steps and Costs.

WHAT’S YOUR SITUATION?

Your next step depends on where you are. Start with the path that fits, or read the full guide below.

How to Use This Guide to Buying a House in Ontario

This guide covers buying a home in Ontario from pre-approval to closing day, for first-time buyers, move-up buyers, and anyone buying across the GTA, Hamilton, or Niagara.

Each section on buying a home in Ontario opens with a short answer and links to a deeper article. Start with the cards above, or read in order.

When you’re buying a home in Ontario with us, we handle the search, pricing, offer, and negotiation. Your lawyer handles the legal side and closing, your mortgage professional the financing, and your accountant tax questions.

What Most Ontario Home Buyers Get Wrong

Short answer: The three most expensive mistakes we see are treating a pre-approval as a final approval, budgeting for the down payment but not the closing costs, and going firm before the conditions have done their job. Each one is avoidable, and each one can cost a buyer the home or thousands of dollars.

Treating pre-approval as final approval

A pre-approval isn’t final. The lender still appraises the home and rechecks your finances, so new debt or a new job before closing can undo it.

Budgeting only for the down payment

Buying a home in Ontario takes cash beyond the down payment. Our post on what a first home budget should include lists every cost.

Going firm too fast

Waiving your conditions removes your exits. In a competitive offer, inspect and confirm financing before the offer date. See our GTA bidding war tips.

What Are the Steps to Buying a House in Ontario?

Short answer: The steps to buying a house in Ontario are: get pre-approved, sign a buyer representation agreement, search, make a written offer with conditions, satisfy the conditions and go firm, then close. Your real estate lawyer searches title, registers the transfer, and pays the land transfer tax on closing day.

The agreement, the deposit, and going firm

In Ontario, the Agreement of Purchase and Sale is the binding contract for buying a home, so every promise belongs in writing. The deposit is due when the agreement says, often with the offer or within 24 hours of acceptance. It’s held in trust by the brokerage named in the agreement and counts toward your down payment.

An accepted offer is a binding contract even while conditions are open. Whether you can end it depends on each condition’s wording and notice deadline. Once every condition is satisfied or waived, the deal is firm, and walking away can cost you the deposit and more. See our guides to the title search in Ontario and what happens on closing day in the GTA.

We are not lawyers, and nothing here is legal advice. For your rights under a specific agreement, speak with your real estate lawyer.

How Much Money Do You Need to Buy a House in Ontario?

Short answer: You need the minimum down payment, which is 5% of the first $500,000 and 10% of the portion between $500,000 and $1.5 million, plus closing costs in cash. Homes at $1.5 million or more need 20% down. You also need to qualify at the federal stress test rate, not just your contract rate.

Down payments and mortgage insurance

If you’re buying a home in Ontario with less than 20% down, your mortgage must be insured. CMHC confirms the premium can go on the mortgage, but Ontario’s sales tax on it is paid at closing. First-time and new-build buyers can choose a 30-year insured amortization; other resale buyers with a high-ratio insured mortgage are generally limited to 25 years.

Uninsured mortgages are stress tested at the greater of your contract rate plus 2% or 5.25%, under OSFI’s minimum qualifying rate. Our guide to mortgage financing for Ontario home buyers goes further.

Programs that lower the cost

First-time buyers can use the FHSA, the RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan, and land transfer tax refunds. New-home buyers signing between April 1, 2026 and March 31, 2027 may qualify for up to $130,000 in HST relief. See Ontario home buyer programs and rebates.

Buying to rent out

A two- to four-unit home you won’t live in needs at least 20% down, even with CMHC’s income property insurance. See buying an income property in Ontario and real estate investing in Ontario.

What Are Closing Costs When Buying a Home in Ontario?

Short answer: Closing costs in Ontario are the cash you pay on top of the down payment. They include provincial land transfer tax, Toronto’s municipal land transfer tax if you buy in Toronto, legal fees and disbursements, title insurance, the sales tax on any mortgage insurance premium, and adjustments such as property tax the seller prepaid.

This worked example applies the published 2026 rules at three fixed illustrative prices, with the minimum down payment and a 25-year insured mortgage. It leaves out legal fees, title insurance, and other costs that vary, and it isn’t a quote.

Land transfer tax follows Ontario’s published rates and Toronto’s matching municipal rates. Get quotes for the costs that vary before you offer.

For anyone buying a home in Ontario, closing costs rise fastest in Toronto, the only municipality with its own land transfer tax. See closing day in the GTA for when each amount is paid.

How Do You Evaluate a Home Before Making an Offer?

Short answer: Before you offer, check six things: what comparable homes sold for, the home’s condition and likely repairs, whether past renovations had permits, whether any second unit is legal, the condo corporation’s finances if it’s a condo, and whether the location suits how you’ll live in five or ten years.

• Comparable sales. Price the home against recent sales of similar homes nearby, not the list price.
• Condition and repairs. Budget for what the inspection is likely to find, such as an older roof, furnace, or windows.
• Permits. Ask whether additions, basements, and decks had permits; your lawyer can search for open permits and work orders.
• Second units. A basement apartment isn’t automatically legal. See our guide to legal basement apartments in the GTA.
• Condo finances. The status certificate shows the reserve fund, special assessments, and legal actions.
• Location fit. Commute, schools, and noise such as a flight path matter more years from now than on move-in day.

These checks are the part of buying a home in Ontario that a list price can’t tell you.

What Conditions Should an Ontario Offer Include?

Short answer: When buying a home in Ontario, most buyers need a financing condition, a home inspection condition, and, for a condo, a condition for their lawyer to review the status certificate. Each gives you a set number of days to confirm the home and the mortgage before the deal goes firm. Conditions are negotiated, so the seller can accept, reject, or counter them.

Buying a home in rural Niagara adds its own checks. The Township of Wainfleet has no municipal water or sewer service, so ask for a water test and septic inspection as conditions.

Buying with a partner, friend, or parent? Decide how you’ll hold title first. See our tips for buying a home jointly in Ontario.

Buying a New Build or Condo in Ontario: What’s Different

Short answer: New homes come with Tarion warranty coverage for one, two, and seven years from possession. Buyers of a new condo from the developer get a 10-day cooling-off period, and new rules starting January 1, 2027 add one for new freehold homes. Resale purchases have no cooling-off period.

Before signing with a builder, confirm in the Ontario Builder Directory that the builder is licensed and the home is enrolled with Tarion; RECO notes a new home can’t be sold until Tarion approves its enrolment. Since April 1, 2026, buyers of a new freehold home must also register the purchase with Tarion within 45 days of signing. Tarion’s updates for home buyers confirm the freehold cooling-off period starting January 1, 2027. The status certificate rules come from the Condominium Authority of Ontario. See our guide to new-home HST rebates and our article on buying a condo in the GTA.

Buying in the GTA vs Niagara: Two Markets, One Team

Short answer: The legal process for buying a home in Ontario is the same in both markets, but costs and due diligence differ. Toronto adds its own land transfer tax, some rural Niagara homes run on private wells and septic systems, and price levels differ enough that the same budget buys a very different home.

Compare areas with our GTA neighbourhood home search tips, our guide to St Catharines neighbourhoods for GTA buyers, and how to search for a home in the GTA vs Niagara.

Should You Buy or Sell First in Ontario?

Short answer: Selling first protects your budget because you know your exact equity, but you may need a short-term rental. Buying first secures the next home but can leave you carrying two properties. Many move-up buyers line up both closings, using bridge financing for the gap if their lender offers it.

1. Sell first if your purchase depends on every dollar of equity.
2. Buy first if the home you want is rare and you can carry both properties.
3. Line up both closings if the dates match, and ask your lender about bridge financing first, because terms vary.

See our guide to selling a home in Ontario, or downsizing in Ontario if you’re moving to something smaller.

How Your Buyer’s Realtor® Works Under TRESA

Short answer: Under Ontario’s Trust in Real Estate Services Act, in force since December 1, 2023, every buyer is either a client of a brokerage or self-represented. As our client, you sign a buyer representation agreement that sets out our services, how we’re paid, and its expiry date, and we advise and negotiate for you.

Client or self-represented

A self-represented buyer gets general information but no advice, opinions, or negotiation on their behalf. Before any services, you receive the RECO Information Guide, which explains the difference.

Could you owe your buyer’s brokerage a fee?

Possibly. Your buyer representation agreement sets how your brokerage is paid, and the seller may cover all, part, or none of it. Before signing, check the amount, when it’s owed, how any seller-paid amount is credited, what you’d pay if there’s a shortfall, and the expiry date.

What we do on every purchase

• Check that your financing and closing cash are in place before showings.
• Recommend conditions that fit the property.
• Negotiate price, deposit, conditions, and closing date.
• Send our funds-ready reminder in writing.

See our buyer services across the GTA and Niagara for how we work with you from search to keys.

A Quick Reality Check Before Closing Day

Sometimes the right advice is to wait. Three signals tell us a buyer isn’t ready yet.

There’s no confirmed plan for your funds. Whether the money comes from savings, a gift, or a sale, it has to be available by each deadline, from the deposit to closing.

Your income is about to change. Talk to your mortgage professional before any job or income change.

The home only works if everything goes right. If one repair or a higher renewal rate would break your budget, the price is too high.

Your closing-week checklist

• Confirm the final amount with your lawyer and how they accept funds.
• Before sending money, call your lawyer at a number you already trust to confirm the payment instructions.
• Finish any outstanding lender requirements.
• Arrange home insurance, plus utilities and movers.
• Don’t plan a morning move-in: keys come after registration and the release of funds.

Related Ontario Home Buying Guides

Getting ready

• First-Time Home Buyer Guide for Ontario. Your first purchase, start to finish.
• Ontario First-Time Home Buyer Checklist. A printable list of every step.
• Ontario Home Buyer Programs. Rebates, savings plans, and who qualifies.
• Mortgage Financing Simplified. Financing basics.

Finding and buying the home

• Finding Your Perfect Home. Narrowing down GTA neighbourhoods.
• Winning Offers in the GTA. Competing for a home.
• Ontario Joint Home Buying Tips. Buying with a partner, friend, or family.
• Title Search in Ontario. How your lawyer protects your ownership.
• Closing Day in the GTA. What happens when your purchase closes.

Condos and income properties

• Buying a Condo in the GTA. Fees, reserve funds, and status certificates.
• Legal Basement Apartments in the GTA. What makes a second unit legal.
• Rental Income Properties in Ontario. Buying a home with rental income.
• Real Estate Investing in Ontario. The broader investment picture.

This guide is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice, and its worked examples are not quotes. Confirm financing with a mortgage professional, and your agreement, closing, and program eligibility with a lawyer or accountant. Rules and programs current as of October 2026.