The tradeoff is mortgage default insurance. Anyone putting down less than 20 percent pays a premium through CMHC, Sagen or Canada Guaranty, added to the loan, and Saskatchewan charges provincial sales tax on that premium in cash at possession, which is a cost first-time buyers commonly forget to budget for.
A smaller down payment also means a larger mortgage and higher monthly payments for the same purchase price, so a buyer should weigh the insurance premium and the higher payment against how much longer it would take to save an additional 15 percent.
At the Saskatoon benchmark of $444,700, the minimum 5 percent down is reachable for many first-time buyers well before they might expect. Get your hand-reviewed valuation from Joel Dyck.