Two completely different payments, at two different times, to two different places — and conflating them is the most common financing confusion we see.
The deposit is paid shortly after your offer is accepted, not at closing. It is your demonstration of good faith — evidence that you are serious enough to put money at risk.
There is no fixed amount set by law. What is customary varies with price and with how competitive the situation is, and a larger deposit genuinely strengthens an offer because it signals commitment with money behind it.
The down payment is the portion of the purchase price you are not borrowing. It is paid at closing, through your lawyer, and the deposit you already paid counts toward it.
Minimum down payment in Canada is tiered by purchase price, and above a certain threshold a conventional down payment is required. Those thresholds and the associated insurance rules change from time to time, so rather than print numbers here that may be out of date when you read this, ask a mortgage broker for the figures that apply to your price range today.
Sequence, for a typical purchase:
The practical consequence people miss: you need the deposit available in days, not weeks. If your funds are in a locked investment or arriving from overseas, start moving them before you write an offer — not after it is accepted.
Closing costs are a third, separate thing — legal fees, Land Titles registration, adjustments, and so on. They are not part of the down payment and are not covered by it. In Alberta there is at least no land transfer tax to add. What you do pay →