The $1.5 million insured cap and first-time buyer programs

The insured price cap is the line that changes a GTA offer. Department of Finance Canada said on September 16, 2024 that mortgage loan insurance would be available on homes up to $1.5 million starting December 15, 2024. CMHC's purchase page, checked October 18, 2026, still says the maximum purchase price or lending value for a homeowner loan must be below $1,500,000. At $1.5 million and above, the minimum down payment is 20%.

Below that cap, the minimum for one or two units is 5% of the first $500,000 and 10% of the rest. FCAC's down-payment table uses those same bands. CMHC's purchase example uses them too.

Illustrative example. An Oakville house at $1,450,000. A 20% down payment is $290,000. The insured minimum is 5% of the first $500,000, which is $25,000, plus 10% of the remaining $950,000, which is $95,000. Together that is $120,000. The mortgage is still subject to lender and insurer approval. The insurance premium is a separate cost, and this paragraph is not a rate.

Illustrative example. A Toronto purchase at $1,500,000 needs $300,000 down because insurance stops at that price. A purchase at $1,490,000 can use the insured minimum: $25,000 plus 10% of $990,000, which is $124,000. Pricing the offer on the wrong side of the cap changes the cash, not just the story.

A first-time buyer can also look at a 30-year insured amortization. The same Finance Canada backgrounder expanded that amortization, effective December 15, 2024, to all first-time home buyers and to buyers of new builds. Other insured files stay at 25 years unless a program says otherwise. CMHC's purchase page, on the day we checked it, still lists 25 years as the maximum and points 30-year amortizations to CMHC Home Start. Ask which product the file is actually in.

The savings programs sit beside the down payment. They are not the down payment by themselves. CRA's FHSA pages describe $8,000 a year and a $40,000 lifetime limit, with a qualifying withdrawal that is tax-free when the rules are met. The Home Buyers' Plan allows up to $60,000 from an RRSP per person, repaid over 15 years. Both were the published CRA descriptions on October 18, 2026: FHSA contributions and the Home Buyers' Plan.

At renewal, the stress test is a different question. OSFI's minimum qualifying rate for uninsured mortgages is the greater of the contract rate plus 2% or 5.25%. OSFI says it does not expect that rate on an uninsured straight switch at renewal when the balance does not increase and the amortization is not extended. Taking equity out puts the test back on. The page is OSFI's minimum qualifying rate, checked October 18, 2026.

The city hubs and the first-time buyer page carry the same questions in shorter form. The closing-cost tool is for land transfer tax, which is not part of the down payment.

Any rate or payment mentioned is illustrative and on approved credit (OAC). It is not a quote, a commitment, or a current offer.