3 Programs For Ontario First Time Home Buyers

By Author: Jamie Hanson
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The time has never been better to be a first time home buyer in Ontario. With evidence reduced rates of interest, stable home rates and an array of excellent plans made specially for first time home buyers.

The First Time Home Buyer RRSP Plan, the Ontario Land Transfer Tax Credit as well as the Toronto Land Transfer Tax Credit are the three major plans that the government has presented for the people who want to buy home for the first time in Ontario. Both the RRSP home buyers plan and the Ontario land transfer tax credit are available state wide. However, if you are buying home in Toronto, the Toronto land transfer tax credit is the only grant available to you . No other places in Ontario at this time have their personal municipal land transfer tax.

Here is a summary of the programs:
First Time Home Buyer RRSP Plan (HBP) - This program enables a first time home buyer to withdraw up to $25,000 from their RRSPs to purchase or build a house. The withdrawn amount must be repaid within 15 years and is subject to a minimum annual repayment of 1/15 of the amount withdrawn. If the full $25,000 is taken out, the ...
... minimum yearly reimbursement will be $1,667. However, if someone is unable to repay the minimum amount in any year, then the remaining balance amount is deposited in the tax payer's income. This is a good program for people who have RRSP's in place but do not possess sufficient funds for a down payment.

The Ontario Land Transfer Tax Credit - This loan helps to repay the expenses of the regions land transfer tax to highest of $2000. The first time home buyer may apply the complete greatest amount or a proportion of the greatest refund amount. This will allow a first time home buyer to purchase a home up to $227,500 without having to pay any land transfer fee. Any amount greater than $227,500 is taxed a rate of around 1.5%. To be eligible the property has to be owner occupied.

The Toronto Land Transfer Tax Credit - Very similar to the Ontario Land Transfer Tax Credit however it only applies to homes purchased in the city of Toronto. The repayment money is also greater at $3725. This allows first time home buyers in Toronto to purchase a home valued as high at $400,000 without having to pay a Toronto land transfer tax . Any additional money more than $400,000 will be taxed at a rate of 2%. To be eligible for this program, you need to check the property has to be occupied by the owner of the home.

To see how much you can qualify for or how much your mortgage payments would be, use our Ontario mortgage calculator. Programs also exist for home buyers who have good credit (a beacon score of 650 or higher) but do not have an RRSP or a sufficient down payment. This program is not exclusive to first time home buyers. For more information, see 'No money down mortgage' on our Ontario first time home buyer page. If you would like more information on any of these programs, please contact me at www.ontariomortgagesuperstore.com.