Most first-time buyers I meet have spent months reading about the housing market and about ten minutes understanding what a lender actually wants from them. That is backwards, and it is why so many people think they cannot buy when they can, or assume they can when they cannot. Here is the real list. The down payment In Canada the minimum is 5% on the first $500,000 of purchase price, and 10% on the portion above that. On a $600,000 home that works out to $35,000 — $25,000 on