Considering buying your first home?

 

Did you know the Canadian Government has First Time Home Buyer programs available for you?

An individual is considered a first-time home buyer if neither the individual nor the individual’s spouse or common-law partner owned and lived in another home in the year of the home purchase or in any of the four preceding calendar years.

Through Canada’s Economic Action Plan, the federal government introduced the First-Time Home Buyers’ Tax Credit (HBTC) to help with the purchase of a first home.

A qualifying home is generally considered to be a housing unit that the individual or individual’s spouse or common-law partner intends to occupy as their principal place of residence no later than one year after its acquisition.

The HBTC assists first-time home buyers with the costs associated with the purchase of a home, such as legal fees, disbursements and land transfer taxes, which are a particular burden for first-time home buyers, who must also save for a down payment. The $5,000 non-refundable HBTC amount applies to qualifying homes acquired after January 27, 2009, and provides up to $750 in federal tax relief.

The Home Buyers' Plan (HBP) is a program that allows you to withdraw funds from your registered retirement savings plan (RRSPs) to buy or build a qualifying home for yourself or for a related person with a disability. You can withdraw up to $25,000 in a calendar year.

Your RRSP contributions must remain in the RRSP for at least 90 days before you can withdraw them under the HBP, or they may not be deductible for any year.

Generally, you have to repay all withdrawals to your RRSPs within a period of no more than 15 years. You will have to repay an amount to your RRSPs each year until your HBP balance is zero. If you do not repay the amount due for a year, it will have to be included in your income for that year.

Check out our links to the Government of Canada website to learn more.