Having the required amount for your down payment is crucial After hearing this, you may be wondering: how much down payment for a house in BC do I need? If you are buying a house for under $500,000 on the contrary, you will only need a minimum of 5% down. If you plan on buying a house between $500,000 & $999,999, your down payment will be at least 5% for the first $500,000, and 10% on every dollar above $500,000, all the way up to $999,999. With houses over $1,000,000, you will need a minimum 20% down. It's also important that should your down payment be below 20% for a home sale under $1,000,000, you will need mortgage insurance.