What SNAP Home Finance Costs You — The Full Picture
When SNAP Home Finance sends you a buyout quote, it is calculated from an internal depreciation schedule — not from the equipment's true depreciated value. Here is what those numbers actually mean.
The two numbers that matter
- The monthly figure on the statement — visible, easily ignored.
- The cumulative obligation over the life of the contract — usually striking when added up.
For most Ontario HVAC, water heater, heat pump, and air filter contracts, the gap between the cumulative obligation and the equipment's true installed value is several multiples — often 5× or more.
Typical contract structure
- Long terms — typically 10 years or more
- Payments collected by SNAP even though the original sale was by a different company
- Total obligations many times the equipment's installed value
- Property registration on title (NOSI prior to 2019, or similar lien-style filings) placed at the time of the original sale
- Confusing buyout language
What you can do about an inflated buyout
Buyout figures from SNAP Home Finance are calculated from internal depreciation schedules — not from the equipment's true depreciated value. The first quoted figure is rarely the final number. Where CPA grounds apply, no buyout is the right answer at all.
Cumulative cost is the story
When homeowners pull their statements together for the first time and see the cumulative number, that is usually the moment they realise something is wrong. The cumulative figure is also the starting point for any damages estimate — see our four pillars of damages guide.
See also: full SNAP Home Finance overview
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