Most buyers budget carefully for the down payment and then get caught off guard by everything else due at closing. In Ottawa, those extra costs typically add up to somewhere between 1.5% and 4% of the purchase price — on a $650,000 home, that's realistically $10,000 to $26,000 in cash you need on hand beyond your down payment. Here's exactly where that money goes.
A closing cost is anything you have to pay to complete the purchase, separate from the down payment itself. Some are fixed government charges, some are professional fees, and a few only apply in specific situations — buying a condo, buying new construction, or putting down less than 20%. The table below covers the full list.
| Cost | Typical Range (Ottawa) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ontario Land Transfer Tax | ~$2,225–$13,475 on a $400K–$800K home | Sliding scale by price; first-time buyers get up to $4,000 back |
| Legal fees | $800–$1,800 | Your real estate lawyer's fee for the transaction itself |
| Legal disbursements | $200–$500 | Title searches, registration fees, courier and admin charges |
| Title insurance | $250–$400 | One-time premium protecting against title defects and fraud |
| Home inspection | $400–$700 | Paid before closing, not technically a "closing" cost, but part of the cash needed |
| Status certificate review (condos only) | $100–$300 | Document fee plus your lawyer's time reviewing it |
| Appraisal fee | $300–$500 | Sometimes covered by the lender, sometimes passed to the buyer |
| PST on mortgage default insurance | 8% of the insurance premium | Only applies with less than 20% down — see below, this one surprises people |
| Property tax & utility adjustments | $200–$2,000+ | Reimbursing the seller for anything they've prepaid past your closing date |
| First year's home insurance | $800–$1,800/year | Lenders require proof of coverage before releasing funds at closing |
Ranges reflect typical Ottawa resale transactions and can vary by lawyer, lender, and property. Ottawa doesn't charge a separate municipal land transfer tax — only Toronto does that among major Ontario cities.
If you're putting down less than 20%, your mortgage requires default insurance (through CMHC or a private insurer), and the premium gets added to your mortgage balance — so it doesn't usually feel like a cash cost. But Ontario charges 8% provincial sales tax on that premium, and the PST portion cannot be rolled into the mortgage. It has to be paid in cash at closing, and it's one of the most commonly underestimated numbers in the entire process.
The category of home you're buying changes which costs apply and by how much.
Pros
- No HST on the purchase price
- Land transfer tax rebate still available for first-time buyers
- Property tax bill is already known and stable
Cons
- Adjustments for the seller's prepaid taxes and utilities can run higher
- Older homes may need an inspection contingency budget on top of closing costs
Pros
- HST rebates can offset a large portion of the tax for qualifying buyers
- Tarion warranty covers major defects from day one
Cons
- Tarion warranty enrolment fee added at closing
- Development levy adjustments can appear as a closing-day surprise if not capped in your agreement
- Property tax is often based on an interim assessment that jumps after MPAC's final review
For a first-time buyer purchasing a $650,000 resale home with 20% down (avoiding default insurance entirely), a rough closing cost estimate looks like this:
- Land transfer tax: approximately $9,475, reduced to about $5,475 after the $4,000 first-time buyer rebate
- Legal fees + disbursements: roughly $1,200–$2,000
- Title insurance: roughly $300
- Home inspection: roughly $500
- Tax/utility adjustments: roughly $300–$800, depending on closing date
That lands total closing costs somewhere around $7,800–$8,900 — before home insurance and moving costs. A buyer with less than 20% down should add the PST on their mortgage default insurance premium on top of this.
This is general information, not personalized financial or legal advice — actual costs vary by lender, lawyer, property type, and individual circumstances. Ask your lawyer for a formal Statement of Adjustments before closing so you know your exact number in advance.
Closing costs are one of the easiest things to estimate accurately before you're locked into a deal — we can walk through your specific price range and down payment scenario so there are no surprises at the lawyer's office.
