Step 1: Figure out how much you can afford.
Falling in love with a house you can’t afford can be heartbreaking. Avoid disappointment by figuring out your budget before you start looking.
• First, decide how much you can afford for your down payment.
The Home Buyers' Plan (HBP) allows you to withdraw up to
$60,000 from your
Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs) to buy or build a qualifying home. You must be a first-time home buyer or buying for a disabled person. The withdrawn amount must be repaid within 15 years. More on that
here. The bigger your down payment, the less principal you will owe, and the less interest you will pay.
• Don’t forget about closing costs, like insurance, legal fees, home inspection costs, land registration and land transfer fees. Add those to your moving expenses and service hookup fees, and they can add up surprisingly fast.
• Your monthly housing expenses (mortgage, taxes, heat, etc.) shouldn’t use up more than 32% of your income. (If your combined monthly income is $5000, for example, 32% of that is $1600.) If you have car payments or credit card debt, the rule of thumb is that debt repayment shouldn’t be more than 40% of your income.
• Get pre-approved for your mortgage. It’s a good way of finding out how much you can borrow – and it speeds up the process once you’ve found the home you want to buy.