⛱ First-time homebuyer budget

Budget the whole move, closing costs and all.

The down payment is only the first number in a home purchase. Land transfer tax, legal fees, a home inspection, and the move itself all land before you’ve unpacked a single box. Budget Forecast’s Home budget has a Buying a Home category built for exactly this: each cost gets its own save-ahead item, with a short timeline you set to your closing date.

Open the planner for free → See how it works

Free to use · No account needed · Built into the free plan

The Buying a Home category

Everything due before you get the keys

Ten one-time purchase costs, sized to a typical closing and yours to adjust.

Every closing cost in one place

Down payment, land transfer tax, legal fees, home inspection, appraisal, and title insurance each get their own line, with a typical cost already filled in. The down payment item notes the FHSA and the Home Buyers’ Plan, and land transfer tax comes with a note on Ontario’s $4,000 rebate for first-time buyers, so neither line assumes you’re paying more than you have to.

The move itself

Moving costs include a do-it-yourself range for renting your own truck, plus separate lines for move-in setup and closing adjustments, the prorated costs settled on closing day. Each one carries a short one-to-five-year timeline tied to your closing date.

Then it becomes your maintenance plan

Once you’re in, the same Home budget keeps going. More than 18 other categories (roofing, HVAC, windows, appliances, and more) track your ongoing upkeep with typical costs you can edit, all inside the budget you already built for closing day.

See it in the planner

Prefilled, then yours to adjust

The Buying a Home category ships with typical ranges already filled in: down payment, land transfer tax, legal fees, home inspection, appraisal, title insurance, PST on CMHC mortgage insurance, moving, move-in setup, and closing adjustments. Every price is yours to adjust, and every timeline is yours to set to your actual closing date.

  • ✓Every cost prefilled with a typical starting range
  • ✓Every price is yours to edit
  • ✓Set each item’s timeline to your actual closing date
Choosing home components in the Budget Forecast planner
Questions

A few common questions

Short answers about the Buying a Home category and what happens after closing day.

What should first-time homebuyers budget for beyond the down payment?
The down payment is usually the biggest number, but it isn’t the only one. Land transfer tax, legal fees, a home inspection, an appraisal, title insurance, and the PST on CMHC mortgage insurance all come due around closing. Then there’s the move itself: moving costs, move-in setup, and the prorated closing adjustments on your final statement. Budget Forecast’s Buying a Home category lists each of these as its own item, with a typical starting range already filled in and a short timeline you set to your closing date.
Does it account for Ontario’s land transfer tax rebate?
Yes. The land transfer tax item in the Buying a Home category carries a note on Ontario’s $4,000 rebate for first-time buyers, so you’re not saving for more than you’ll actually owe at closing. Buying in another province? Every figure is editable, so you can set it to your local rules.
What happens after I move in?
The same Home budget keeps going. Once you’ve closed, more than 18 other categories (roofing, HVAC, windows, appliances, and more) are already there for your ongoing maintenance, with typical costs you can edit. Mark each Buying a Home item done as you clear it, and the rest of the budget carries on as your regular maintenance plan.

See the whole move in one plan

Open the planner, add the Buying a Home category, and set each timeline to your closing date.

Open the planner for free →