Cashback When Buying a House in Canada: How It Works and How Much You Get
Yes, you can get cashback when you buy a house in Canada. The buyer's purchase is what funds every professional in the deal, and a portion of that can be returned to the buyer at closing, paid from the professionals' acquisition budgets. In one nationally reported case, a Greater Toronto Area buyer received close to $35,000 back after buying his home (CBC News, 2024). What most buyers miss is that the realtor cashback is only one of the rewards available on a single purchase.
What is homebuyer cashback?
Homebuyer cashback is money returned to the buyer after a home purchase closes. A home purchase is what generates income for every professional in the deal. Cashback returns a portion of that to the buyer, funded from the budgets those professionals already spend to acquire clients.
It is not an extra cost added to the buyer, and it is not a discount the buyer has to negotiate. The buyer does not pay more to receive it.
Who pays the cashback?
The buyer funds the professionals. A home purchase is the event that pays the realtor, the broker, the lawyer, and everyone else in the transaction. Cashback returns a portion of that to the buyer at closing, paid from the acquisition budgets those professionals already spend to win clients. It does not increase the purchase price and does not come out of the buyer's pocket. It returns money to the person who created the deal: the buyer.
How much cashback can you get on a $700,000 home?
The amount depends on the price of the home and which services you use. Most platforms in Canada return cashback from a single professional, usually the realtor. HiveRewards is built around the six professionals involved in a home purchase, which means cashback can be stacked across more than one of them on the same deal.
Here is a worked example on a $700,000 home with a first-time buyer making the minimum down payment of $45,000:
| Source of cashback | Approximate amount |
|---|---|
| Realtor-side cashback | $2,520 |
| Mortgage-side cashback | $1,572 |
| Combined total | $4,092 |
Amounts are estimates. Actual cashback depends on the home price, the down payment, and the participating professionals. Realtor cashback is provided through a licensed brokerage and requires HiveRewards to be registered as the referral source before closing.
How is the cashback calculated?
The realtor-side cashback is based on a percentage of the purchase price. The mortgage-side cashback is based on a percentage of the mortgage amount, which is the purchase price minus the down payment. Because the two are calculated on different bases, a buyer who uses both gets two separate cashback amounts from one purchase. Most cashback platforms only offer the first one.
Minimum down payment in Canada (2026)
The cashback math depends on the down payment, so it helps to know the minimum. In Canada the minimum down payment is 5% on the portion of the price up to $500,000, and 10% on the portion between $500,000 and $1.5 million. Homes priced at $1.5 million or more require at least 20% down.
Is homebuyer cashback allowed in Canada?
Cashback rebates to buyers are an established practice in Canadian real estate and are recognized as compliant with the Canadian Real Estate Association's codes when handled with full disclosure. HiveRewards operates across Canada with the exception of Quebec. The cashback is arranged through a licensed real estate brokerage, and HiveRewards must be registered as the referral source before the deal closes. This is a structured, documented arrangement, not a discount negotiated privately on the side.
When do you get the cashback?
Most buyers receive their cashback within 1 to 14 days after closing, once the transaction is complete. It is delivered as a cheque or transfer.
What makes stacked cashback different?
A home purchase involves six professionals: a realtor, a mortgage broker, a real estate lawyer, a home insurance broker, a home inspector, and a financial advisor. Each one has a cost to acquire a new client. HiveRewards is the layer underneath all six. When a buyer uses more than one of them on the same purchase, the cashback adds up, rather than stopping at the realtor cashback alone. The buyer creates the value across the entire transaction, so the reward follows the buyer across the entire transaction.