Buying your first home in Durham Region in 2026: the money, the programs and the steps

Buying a first home in Durham comes down to three questions: how much cash you need, which programs can supply some of it, and what the lender will approve. This guide works through each one on a $650,000 townhouse, a typical first home in Oshawa, Courtice or Ajax.

Rules as checked in October 2026. The figures are calculated by the same calculators this site runs, so you can open any of them and put in your own numbers. Confirm the final amounts with your lender and your real estate lawyer.

Who counts as a first time buyer

Each program has its own definition, so you can be a first time buyer for one and not another.

• Land transfer tax refund: you have never owned a home, or an interest in one, anywhere in the world, and you will live in this one within nine months.
• FHSA and Home Buyers' Plan: you have not lived in a home that you or your spouse or partner owned in this calendar year or the previous four.

The down payment

The minimum is 5% of the first $500,000 of the price and 10% of the part above it. On a $650,000 home that is $40,000, or 6.2%. A home at $1,500,000 or more needs 20% down.

With less than 20% down, the mortgage has to be insured. On this example the premium is $25,620 (4.2% of the loan), and it is added to the mortgage, so you borrow about $635,620. Ontario charges 8% sales tax on that premium, $2,050, and it has to be paid in cash on closing day. Try your own numbers in the CMHC insurance calculator.

First time buyers can stretch an insured mortgage over 30 years instead of 25, which lowers the monthly payment.

Three programs that help with the cash

A couple who are both first time buyers can bring up to $200,000 from the FHSA and the Home Buyers' Plan together, before any growth. Open an FHSA as early as you can: contribution room starts building only once the account is open.

Durham has no city land transfer tax, so on a $650,000 home a first time buyer pays $5,475 in land transfer tax after the refund. See it in the land transfer tax calculator.

Buying new instead

On a brand new home, first time buyers can also get back up to $50,000 of the federal part of the HST and up to $80,000 of the Ontario part. The rules and the dates are in Natalia's guide to the new home HST rebate.

What the lender will approve

Lenders test you at the greater of your mortgage rate plus 2% or 5.25%, not at the rate you will pay. Your housing costs and your other debts have to fit within set shares of your income at that higher rate. The affordability calculator shows the highest price that passes the test, and the rent versus buy calculator shows when buying pulls ahead of renting.

The worked example

The lawyer, title insurance, a home inspection and the tax and utility adjustments come on top. The closing cost calculator adds every line, and Natalia's cost to buy guide walks through them.

The steps, in order

1. Get pre-approved. It sets your price range and holds a rate while you look.
2. Open your FHSA, if you have not already, and plan any Home Buyers' Plan withdrawal with your bank.
3. Choose the towns. Compare commutes, schools and prices on the town pages.
4. Make an offer with conditions, usually on financing and a home inspection, so you can walk away if either falls through.
5. Hire a real estate lawyer before you sign. They handle the title, the land transfer tax refund and closing day.
6. Close. Your lawyer pays the seller, registers the home in your name, and hands you the keys.

Want to see what fits your numbers? Book 15 minutes with Natalia, or ask Natalia's office any time.