Insurance changes the math rather than blocking the purchase. The lender adds a premium, which varies with how far below 20 percent the down payment sits, onto the mortgage balance, and Saskatchewan charges provincial sales tax on that premium, due in cash at closing rather than financed into the loan, which is the line item first-time buyers most often forget to budget for.
A buyer using the Home Buyers' Plan or a First Home Savings Account to assemble a 5 to 10 percent down payment is following one of the most common paths into Saskatoon homeownership, not an unusual or risky one.
The tradeoff for a smaller down payment is a higher total borrowing cost over the life of the mortgage, so a buyer should weigh getting in sooner against the extra premium against saving longer for 20 percent.
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