Your Saskatchewan Home Buyer Guide

What this form does for you: it works out your real price range, your down payment and closing costs, and the monthly cost you can live with — then matches that to the home types, neighbourhoods and wish list that fit you. At the end you get your personal buying plan: your numbers, your answers and your next steps, all in one summary.

How long it takes: about 10 minutes to go through properly and fill in your information (most people take 5–10 minutes). You can take your time — your answers save on your device as you go.

Your results stay hidden until you hit Submit at the end of section 8. When you submit, your results appear right away — and a copy goes to Shammi at the same time, so he can review your plan with you.

Try it: estimate your lender range

Lender could approve a home up to about

Rough guide only; assumes about $450/month for property tax + heat. A lender or mortgage broker confirms your real number.

Amortization: on an insured mortgage (less than 20% down), the standard maximum is 25 years. Since December 15, 2024, two groups can stretch it to 30 years: first-time buyers, and anyone buying a newly built home — even if you have owned a home before. Choosing 30 years adds a small surcharge (0.20%) to the insurance premium. With 20% or more down the mortgage is uninsured, and 30 years is available from many lenders. A longer amortization lowers the monthly payment, but you pay more interest over the life of the mortgage.

Title transfer fee ≈ 0.3% of price (Saskatchewan has no land transfer tax). “Other closing” assumes about $3,000 for legal, title insurance, mortgage registration, inspection and adjustments. Estimates only; your lawyer confirms the exact figures. Lenders also want proof of funds for down payment and closing costs.

Step 1 — Get pre-approved

Not mandatory, and that’s okay — but if you have one, it definitely helps. A pre-approval tells you the price range a lender is likely to work with (often with a rate held for 90–120 days), and sellers take your offer more seriously in a negotiation when they know a lender has already reviewed your income and credit. It is not a final approval: the lender still approves the actual home once your offer is accepted.

Step 2 — The house hunt

We tour homes that fit your price range, wish list and areas (sections 5 and 6). Take notes, visit at different times of day, and compare honestly — when you find the one, move quickly but not emotionally.

Step 3 — Write an offer

Your REALTOR® prepares the offer: price, deposit, possession date, what’s included (appliances and so on), and your conditions — the protections in the next steps. The seller can accept it, reject it, or counter. Nothing is final until everyone has signed.

Step 4 — Pay the deposit

Once your offer is accepted, you pay the deposit within 2 business days — by cheque, bank draft, or e-transfer. If you pay by cheque, I’ll deposit it for you. I’ll also send you a link from the Fintracker app to collect the details of the account your deposit money was withdrawn from (name of your bank, type of account — chequing or savings — and the account number). This is a standard compliance step for real estate transactions; it’s all secure and not shared with anyone. The deposit is held in trust, usually by the listing brokerage; it is not handed to the seller. Two things to know:

• If your conditions are not removed by the deadline, the deal ends and your deposit is refunded.
• If conditions are removed, the deposit simply becomes part of your down payment — it is credited toward what you owe at closing.

Step 5 — Home inspection

During the condition period, a home inspector checks the home’s structure and systems — roof, furnace, plumbing, electrical, moisture and more. The report helps you decide: remove your conditions, ask the seller to fix or credit something, or walk away with your deposit back.

Step 6 — Remove your conditions

What “conditions” are: protective clauses in your offer — most commonly financing (your lender fully approves you for this home) and inspection (you’re satisfied with the home’s condition). Some offers add others, like a condominium document review.

“Removing” them means signing a written notice before the deadline saying you’re satisfied and the conditions are waived. That is the moment your deal becomes firm and binding — both sides are committed. Miss the deadline without removing them, and the deal falls apart (and your deposit comes back).

Step 7 — The waiting period: the “don’t” list

Between condition removal and getting the keys, your deal is firm — but your mortgage is not finished yet. An approval is not a guarantee. Lenders can re-check your income, credit and debts right up until funding, and if a major factor has changed, they can decline to lend. If that happens after conditions are removed, you can’t close — and you can lose your deposit.

So, until you have the keys:

• Don’t change jobs, quit, or go self-employed
• Don’t buy a car or take on any new loan or financing
• Don’t open new credit cards or co-sign for anyone
• Don’t make big purchases or move large sums of money around without asking first
• Don’t miss payments on anything

Basically: no big financial decisions until possession day. Meanwhile, this is the time to arrange home insurance (your lender requires it), set up utilities, and book movers.

Step 8 — Final approval & your lawyer appointment

Your lender issues the final mortgage approval and sends instructions to your lawyer. Within about a week before closing, you’ll meet the lawyer to sign the mortgage and transfer documents, show ID, arrange proof of home insurance, and bring the rest of your money — the balance of your down payment plus closing costs.

Step 9 — Final walkthrough

Shortly before possession, we walk through the home together to confirm it’s in the same condition as when you bought it, agreed repairs are done, and everything that was included is still there.

Step 10 — Possession day 🎉

On closing day your lawyer transfers the funds and registers the home in your name. Once that’s confirmed, the keys are released — in Saskatchewan, usually around noon. Congratulations, it’s yours. Hurray!