First Time Home Buyer Grants Ontario (2018):
Buying a home can be expensive. With the new mortgage rules, rise in prices and interest rates, home buying has become stressful especially if it’s your first time!
In this article we bring you 11 first time Home buyer grants to ease the strain on your wallet.
This program allows you to withdraw up to $25,000 from your RRSP to buy or build a new home. You can also use it to buy or build a home for yourself or someone you know with a disability.
The First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit is a non-refundable tax credit that helps homeowners recover costs. You can claim up to $5,000 for the purchase of a qualifying home on your personal tax return on the year of purchase if
- You or your spouse or common-law partner acquired a qualifying home; and
- You did not live in another home owned by you or your spouse or common-law partner in the year of acquisition or in any of the four preceding years (first-time home buyer).
If you have a disability (i.e., you are eligible for the disability tax credit) or if you bought the house to improve accessibility for someone who is disabled, you do not have to be a first-time home buyer.
CMHC offers a premium refund of up to 25% on the CMHC mortgage loan insurance premium when you buy or build an energy-efficient home, or you buy an existing home and make energy-saving renovations.
For eligibility requirements and more information, Click here!
This credit is a tax-free payment to help you with your property taxes and sales tax on energy costs.
You could get a maximum of:
- $1,042 if you are between 18 and 64 years old
- $1,187 if you are over 65 years old
- $232 if you live on a reserve or in a public long-term care home
- $25 for the time you lived in a designated college, university or private school residencein 2017
Use the tax credit calculator to see how much money you could get.
When you buy land or an interest in land in Ontario, you pay land transfer tax. First-time homebuyers of an eligible home may be eligible for a refund of all or part of the tax.
No land transfer tax would be payable by qualifying first‑time purchasers on the first $368,000 of the value of the consideration for eligible homes. First‑time purchasers of homes greater than $368,000 would receive a maximum refund of $4,000.
To claim a refund, you must be at least 18 years of age, you cannot have owned a home or an interest in a home anywhere in the world, and your spouse cannot have owned a home or interest in a home, anywhere in the world while he or she was your spouse.
For more details, Click here!
Those living in a qualifying location can take advantage of the Northern Ontario Energy Credit. This tax credit allows single people to receive a credit on their taxes of up to $151and allows families (including single parents) to receive up to $232.
The purpose of this program is to help Northern Ontario residents with the higher energy costs they face living in the north.
For a list of qualifying cities and eligibility criteria, Click here!
Through their Energy-Efficient Housing Program, home buyers purchasing an energy-efficient home or making energy saving renovations are now eligible for upto a 25% rebate.
For more information on eligibility requirements, Click here!
Daniels FirstHome program offers an interest-free, 20-year forgivable loan for 10% of the down payment that “boosts” your down payment to 15%. You don’t even have to have the whole 5% up front. Initially you pay $3,500 when you sign the Agreement to Purchase and Sale, and then you can pay $1,000 a month after that until you reach the required 5%. On top of that, you could also qualify for an additional $25,000 in financing.
These programs are more flexible with the current fluctuating interest rates and the rise in prices in Toronto. The one downside is that first time home buyers have to register on their website and they sell newly built homes on a first-come first-served basis!
For more information check out their website here!
If you are a first time home buyer living in Toronto and you’re ready to buy your first home, you can register for the land transfer tax rebate. In addition with the provincial tax credit, you can get up to $4,475.00 back from the land transfer tax you pay when you buy your home.
You must be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident to qualify and you or your spouse should not own a home anywhere in the world at present or in the past.
For more information on this, Click here!
If you’re over 18 and renting, have a combined household income of less than $90,500, and want to buy a house worth less than $386,000 in the Waterloo region you qualify for the program that gives you a 5% loan to put towards your down payment. This loan is interest free and fully forgivable if you stay in your home for 20 years. If you qualify, you will have 90 days to buy a home.
The Home in Peel Affordable Ownership Program is designed for residents who are currently renting a unit in the Region of Peel (Brampton, Caledon or Mississauga) the opportunity to qualify for down payment loan assistance to buy a home in Peel Region. It offers a 20-year, interest-free, forgivable loan for 10% (up to $20,000) of the down payment on an existing home.
To be eligible,
- You must be a Canadian citizen or have permanent resident and be 18 years or older
- Your gross household income should not exceed $88,900
- You must be able to obtain a mortgage pre-approval from a bank/lender that is approved and insured by a mortgage default insurer such as Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC)
- You must not own or have an interest in another residential property in Canada or elsewhere.
The Ontario Home Ownership Savings plan provides a refundable tax credit to help individuals and couples save towards their first home. If you have a net income of less than $40,000 or a combined income of less than $80,000 for a couple.
Information on the eligibility and the procedure can be downloaded here!
Hopefully, these schemes and grants make the home buying process a little more accessible and easy. ReVa can help you find the best home for your needs and help connect you to top-notch agents. Message ReVa today!