More Bang for Your Buck!!
What a lot of home buyers learn after buying their home is that with a smaller amount of money upfront, they are able to purchase something that is far more valuable than their upfront amount could originally buy. This is called leveraging. And that is basically what a mortgage does for you. In simple terms, you use a down payment to allows you to borrow the remainder (which is called the principal). When you purchase a house you may put down $15,000 and then own a house that is worth $300,000. That $15,000 is 5% of the value of the house, which is the minimum allowed in Canada. Then the lender will lend you the remainder that is paid off over the term of the mortgage.
Now the bonus is if your house, over the first year of owning it, appreciates another 5% (then your house will be worth $315,000), that original $15,000 that you have put down is now worth an extra $15,000 bringing it to $30,000. Which is 100% return on your investment.
Now, you should always remember, with an investment there is always a risk. I gave an example of the house going up in value, which is called appreciate. But it can also go down in value, which is called depreciate. However, if you are planning on hanging on to the house for a while, that shouldn't make a difference, as the value isn't drawn from your bank. It is just something that is on a piece of paper. Over time the value should rise again and you will be back where you started or even better.