FREE GUIDE FOR FIRST-TIME BUYERS IN ONTARIO
Everything you need to know before you buy your first home
A plain-English walkthrough of what buying your first home in Ontario actually costs, the government programs that can save you thousands, and how to get mortgage-ready — before you ever start shopping.
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Why this guide exists
Most first-time buyers get the same ten questions answered piecemeal — a little from a realtor, a little from a parent, a little from a late-night search. By the time the numbers actually matter, the advice has turned into noise.
This guide lays it out clearly in one place: what your first home really costs beyond the down payment, the government programs most people never realize they can stack, and exactly what a lender checks before they say yes. Written for anyone buying their first home anywhere in Ontario.
What’s inside
Section 1 — The real cost of buying a home
The closing costs beyond the down payment — land transfer tax, legal fees, title insurance, the default-insurance PST — and the 1.5%–4% rule of thumb that keeps them from catching you off guard.
Section 2 — Down payment rules in Canada
The 5% / 10% / 20% tiers (these are federal rules, not lender rules), where your down payment is allowed to come from, the 90-day paper trail lenders expect, and the 30-year amortization option open to first-time buyers.
Section 3 — Government programs for first-time buyers
The FHSA, the RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan, the Ontario and Toronto land-transfer-tax rebates, and the HST rebate on new builds — what each one is worth, and how they stack.
Section 4 — Getting mortgage-ready
The three questions every lender is really asking — affordability ratios, the stress test, and your credit track record — plus the document checklist to have ready before you apply.
Section 5 — Five mistakes first-time buyers make
From shopping on the interest rate alone to making big financial moves mid-file — the avoidable missteps that quietly cost buyers money or stall a deal at the worst possible moment.
Section 6 — Your path from assessment to keys
The six-step journey from your first call to closing day, and the three-to-twelve-month timeline most first-time buyers should plan around.
Section 7 — How to work with me
Why there’s no fee to you as the buyer, what a first call actually looks like, and how to tell whether the timing is right before you commit to anything.
Who this is for
- First-time buyers anywhere in Ontario — Toronto and all four surrounding regions
- Anyone saving toward a first home who wants to use the FHSA, the Home Buyers’ Plan, and the rebates correctly
- Buyers who want the true all-in cost before they start shopping, not after
- Anyone who’s only ever been told “just talk to your bank” and wants the fuller picture
About the author
I’m Miroshan Nithiyananthan, a licensed mortgage agent with Mortgage Foundations (agent licence M26000255, brokerage FSRA #13614). I work with first-time buyers across the GTA and Ontario. I built this guide because the same ten questions come up on almost every first call — and buyers always tell me they wish someone had just laid it all out clearly before they started looking at homes. This is that.
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