First Time Home Buyers & Tax Free Savings Account
RRSP/Home Buyer Plan:
You can contribute up to $35,000 to your RRSPs, provided you have the room. You will want to confirm your RRSP room by checking your most recent Notice of Assessment.
Any RRSP contributions made on or before March 1st 2024 can count for 2023.
Meaning when you do your taxes in the spring/summer then you will get a tax refund based on your contribution and your marginal tax bracket.
To use it for your down payment, they must be in your RRSP account for a minimum of 90 days before closing.
Tax-Free First Home Savings Account:
In Budget 2022, the government proposed the introduction of the Tax-Free First Home Savings Account (FHSA).
This new registered plan would give prospective first-time home buyers the ability to save $40,000 on a tax-free basis.
Like a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP), contributions would be tax-deductible, and withdrawals to purchase a first home—including from investment income—would be non-taxable, like a Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA).
The First-Time Home Buyer Incentive helps people across Canada purchase their first home. The program offers 5 or 10% of the home’s purchase price to put toward a down payment.
Closing Cost Information:
If you purchase a property up to $500,000 then as a first time home buyer in BC, you are exempt from paying the property transfer tax.
On $500,000 this would normally be $8,000.
From $500,001 to $524,999 there is a partial exemption.
There is a property transfer tax exemption on brand new properties in BC under $750,000 (before GST).
From $750,001 - $799,999 there is a partial exemption.
Other Benefits:
Annual Home Owners' Grant: Reduces your annual property taxes by $570.
First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit: $1,500 tax refund when you do your taxes the following year.
First Time Home Buyer Incentive Program:
This addition to your down payment lowers your mortgage carrying costs, making homeownership more affordable.