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Buy With Zero Down

How Calgary buyers get into a home without savings for a down payment

Can You Buy a Calgary Home With Nothing Saved?

The honest answer: a purchase in Canada needs at least 5% down. But that 5% does not have to come out of your own savings account, and that is where most people get stuck unnecessarily.

It Is Not "Do You Have It" — It Is "Where Does It Come From"

On a $400,000 Calgary home the minimum down payment is $20,000. Lenders care that the money is there and that it is properly documented. Several of the ways to get there do not involve years of saving.

Four Routes Worth Knowing

A gifted down paymentMoney from an immediate family member is accepted by lenders. It needs a signed gift letter confirming it is a gift and not a loan, and the funds usually have to be in your account before closing.
A borrowed down paymentSome lenders allow the down payment to come from a loan or line of credit — often called flex-down. Availability varies, the rate is usually higher, and the repayment counts against your debt ratios. It is a real option, not a free one.
Your RRSPThe Home Buyers' Plan lets a first-time buyer withdraw up to $60,000 from an RRSP tax-free toward a home. A couple can access up to $120,000 between them. You repay it over time.
A First Home Savings AccountUp to $8,000 a year to a $40,000 lifetime maximum. Tax-deductible going in, tax-free coming out for a first home. Worth opening even at $0 — contribution room only starts building once the account exists.

What Does Not Change

However you fund the down payment, you still have to qualify — and at the stress test rate, not the rate you will actually pay. If the down payment is borrowed, that payment counts against you. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling something. Worth knowing before you fall for a listing.

Find Out Which Route Fits You

Which of these works depends on your income, your debts and whether family can help. Tell us roughly where you stand and we will point you to a mortgage professional who can tell you what is realistic — before you start looking, not after.

FIND OUT WHAT'S POSSIBLE
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REAL BROKER | REAL ESTATE PARTNERS TEAM
Dusko Sremac
#101 7710 5th St SE
Calgary, AB T2H 2L9
587-578-7653
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