Home Guides The BC Home-Buying Checklist Every step of a BC home purchase, in order, from the first mortgage conversation to the keys in your hand.
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1 · Get your finances in shape Done before you book a single viewing. It sets the price band and stops you falling in love with a home you cannot finance.
Get a real mortgage pre-approval A pre-approval (not a rate-quote) confirms a lender will fund you, holds a rate, and tells you the mortgage you actually qualify for under the OSFI stress test. Bring the income, debt, and down-payment documents up front so it is firm, not provisional. Budget the full cash-to-close, not just the down payment Property Transfer Tax, legal / notary fees, the home inspection, and the property-tax adjustment all land in cash on completion day. The Closing-Day Cash calculator bundles every line item. Use the tax-advantaged down-payment accounts First-time buyers should check the FHSA and the RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan; both let you fund a down payment with pre-tax or tax-sheltered dollars. Open the FHSA early; contribution room only starts accruing once the account exists. Confirm whether the First-Time Home Buyer PTT exemption applies The FTHB exemption can erase or sharply cut Property Transfer Tax below the price thresholds. Eligibility has residency and ownership-history conditions, so confirm them before you bank on the saving. Choose a REALTOR® before you start viewing Buyer representation is typically paid from the listing side, so the cost of having your own agent from day one is usually nil to you, and they run the comparables, the offer strategy, and the subject-clause drafting. 2 · Find the home The search itself, narrowed by what the financing and your life actually need.
Separate must-haves from nice-to-haves Write the list down before you tour. Location, bed/bath count, and property type (detached, townhouse, condo) are hard constraints; finishes are not. Learn the neighbourhood, not just the listing Check the live market snapshot for the area (months of inventory and the sales-to-active ratio tell you whether you are in a buyers’ or sellers’ market), plus commute, school catchments, and what is being built nearby. Understand strata vs. freehold before you tour either A strata purchase buys you into a corporation with bylaws, fees, and a contingency reserve fund. A freehold purchase puts every repair and every cost on you. They are different products; decide which you are shopping for. View enough homes to calibrate See a range before you write. Calibration is what lets you recognise a fairly priced home, and a mispriced one, when it appears. 3 · Write the offer The Contract of Purchase and Sale: price, deposit, dates, and the subject clauses that protect you.
Price the offer off recent comparable sales Your agent pulls genuinely comparable recent sales (same area, same property type, similar size and condition), and the list price is an asking position, not the value. Set the deposit and where it is held The deposit is paid into a brokerage trust account after subject removal and is credited to the price on completion. Confirm the amount and the timing in the contract. Include the subject clauses that protect you Typical subjects: financing, a satisfactory home inspection, title review, and, for strata, review of the strata documents. Each is a defined window to verify something before you are bound. Waiving a subject to win a competitive offer transfers that risk entirely to you. Agree the key dates Subject-removal date, completion date, possession date, and adjustment date all go in the contract. Give the subject-removal window enough room to actually do the inspection and get the lender’s final word. 4 · The subject-removal period The due-diligence window: the one stretch where you can still walk away. Use all of it.
Book and attend the home inspection A licensed inspector checks structure, roof, electrical, plumbing, and the envelope. Attend it; the verbal walkthrough is worth as much as the report. Get the lender’s final financing confirmation Pre-approval is not final approval. The lender underwrites the specific property, may order an appraisal, and only then issues firm financing. Do not remove the financing subject until that confirmation is in writing. Review the strata documents, if it is a strata Read the Form B Information Certificate, the depreciation report, two years of meeting minutes, the financial statements, and the contingency reserve fund balance. Special levies, litigation, and deferred maintenance all surface here. Have title reviewed A title search surfaces the charges, easements, covenants, and liens registered against the property. Your lawyer or notary flags anything that should give you pause. Remove subjects: in writing, on time Subjects are removed by signed addendum before the deadline. Once removed the deal is firm and the deposit is at risk; until then, a subject left unsatisfied lets you walk. 5 · From subject removal to completion The deal is firm. Now the legal and money mechanics line up for closing day.
6 · Completion and possession Closing day, key day, and the few things that still need doing afterward.
Bronson Job PREC REALTOR® · Momentum Realty Inc. GVR Member #6015742 · FVREB Member #FJOBBR
Sources and how we verify I’m Bronson Job, a REALTOR® (PREC) with Momentum Realty Inc., so I earn a commission when I help someone buy or sell. This is general information, not advice on your situation, and I take no payment from any third party named here. How I verify .