How Much is a Down Payment on a House?

In Canada, your minimum down payment depends on the price of the home:

• On the first $500,000 → 5%

• On the portion from $500,000 to $999,999 → 10%

• On homes $1,000,000+ → 20% minimum down payment

So you can buy with less than 20% down on homes under $1M, but anything at or above $1M generally requires at least 20%.

KOHO Everything to Build Your Down Payment

Since you usually can’t avoid a down payment, the real question is how to grow it faster and keep it organized.

With the KOHO Everything plan, you get:

• Grow your savings with 3.5% interest, one of the highest rates in Canada

• Earn a 2% cash back rate on groceries, eating, drinking, and transportation and 0.5% cash back on everything else

• There are no foreign exchange fees, so you save on international purchases and travel

• Unlimited transactions and free e-transfers

• No minimum balance required, ever

Example: Minimum Down Payment Calculations

Here’s how the rules play out in practice:

• Home price: $400,000

  • 5% of $400,000 = $20,000 minimum down payment

• Home price: $700,000

  • 5% of first $500,000 = $25,000

  • 10% of remaining $200,000 = $20,000

  • Total minimum down payment = $45,000

• Home price: $1,000,000+

  • Minimum 20% down

  • At exactly $1,000,000 → $200,000 minimum down payment

Remember, this is just the down payment—you also need money for closing costs (legal fees, land transfer tax, inspections, etc.).

How Much Should You Put Down?

The minimum is one thing; what’s comfortable is another. You might choose to put down more if:

• You want smaller monthly payments

• You want to avoid or reduce mortgage default insurance (on down payments under 20%)

• You’d feel better with more equity in your home from day one

But you don’t want to drain your savings so much that you’re house-poor—no emergency fund, no buffer, constant stress.

A healthy approach is:

1. Build an emergency fund first

2. Save your minimum down payment + closing costs

3. Add extra if it doesn’t wipe out all your cash