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First Time Home Buyer's Guide

 

Purchasing a home is exciting, especially for first-time home buyers!

 

However, it's important to seek professional advice on first-time buyer mortgages for such an important milestone.

 

 

 

We’ll give you the facts in this first-time home buyer guide to ensure your budget aligns with your viewings. We will tell you things about your credit that your bank won’t tell you. With access to multiple first-time buyer mortgage lenders, we can source the best mortgage rates and best options to help you buy your dream home.

 

Our best advice: begin the conversation at least 4 months before buying your first home so that we can guide you through the first-time home buyer process.

 

We are available to review each bid to ensure the qualifying aligns and disclose payments for that mortgage. We work after hours and on weekends to ensure that you and your realtor have coverage for placing the bid.

 

We have access to all of the government programs for the down payment and have access to lenders that qualify without a stress test, so there are more options to assist you buy!

 

Talk to My Broker About First Time Home Buying

 

 

FIRST TIME BUYER MORTGAGE PRE-APPROVAL

Before Shopping

 

Find out how much you can afford before you go shopping for your first home! This will keep you focused on shopping within your first home price range and budget.

 

If you qualify for a pre-approved mortgage, you’ll be certain of the size of mortgage you want based on your budget. Each bid, we can review that the taxes, condo fees, and payment work for qualifying.

 

Reach out to us at [email protected] and get your first time home buyers guide.

 

Learn More About Mortgage Pre-Approval

 

Couple smiling at mortgage broker while signing a paper.

FIRST TIME HOME BUYER

Mortgage Down Payment

 

You can purchase a home with as little as 5% down, which can be gifted from a family member, come from your own savings, or an RRSP.

 

We have cashback options available to allow you to buy for a slightly higher rate and insurance premium but allow you to buy now rather than prolonging it to accumulate a down payment. We can discuss the options and you can pick what works best with your budget and timing.

 

Check Out Our Mortgage Planning Guide

 

 

 

HOME BUYER INCENTIVE

Government Programs

 

There are government programs to help Canadians buy their first home. One is called the first time home buyer incentive program. At least one purchaser must be a first-time buyer to qualify. Your total income cannot exceed $120,000 in our Region. You must be a Canadian Citizen and not borrow more than 4 times your income.

 

The government will offer 5% for a first-time buyer on a resale or 10% for a first-time buyer of new construction. This cannot be a home purchased to be used as a rental, it has to be owner-occupied. There are some conditions to the program, let’s discuss if this works for you.

 

Discuss Home Buyer Incentive With My Mortgage Broker

Couple holding hands in their new home.

We can discuss all mortgage products to ensure that you get the product that suits your needs.

 

 

Book a First Time
Buyer Consultation

 

 

FIRST HOME SHOPPING AND

Placing an Offer

 

If you don’t have a realtor, we can assist by providing some quality agents to represent you as a new buyer.

 

The realtor will review your wants and wish list of your first home and work to find you the perfect match.

 

Then we come in with financing and ensure the bid aligns with your pre-approval and lender requirements.

 

 

BUYING YOUR FIRST HOME

Offer Acceptance Process & Incentives

 

Once your offer is accepted, we will assist you to fund by having the lender review your documents to remove all conditions, this allows the funds to be wired to your lawyer. A lawyer is required to register the mortgage and deed and put you on a title for the property. In this process, there are fees associated to buying your first home.

 

 

Home Buyer Incentives

 

1. Home Buyer Tax (HBT): the home buyer gets a $5000 non-refundable income tax credit on a qualifying home acquired during the year. It provides up to $750 of income tax relief.

 

You can claim up to $5,000 for the purchase of a qualifying home in the year if both of the following apply:

  • You (or your spouse or common-law partner) acquired a qualifying home
  • You did not live in another home owned by you (or your spouse or common-law partner) in the year of the acquisition or in any of the four preceding years (first-time home buyer)

 

2. Home Buyer’s Plan (HBP): a program that allows you to withdraw up to $35,000 in a calendar year from your RRSP and buy or build a qualifying home for yourself or a related person with a disability.

 

Certain conditions must be met to be eligible to participate in the HBP, including the following:

  • You must be considered a first-time home buyer
  • You must have a written agreement to buy or build a qualifying home, either for yourself or for a related person with a disability
  • You must be a resident of Canada when you withdraw funds from your RRSPs under the HBP and up to the time a qualifying home is bought or built
  • You must intend to occupy the qualifying home as your principal place of residence within one year after buying or building it. If you buy or build a qualifying home for a related person with a disability, or help a related person with a disability to buy or build a qualifying home, you must intend that the related person with a disability occupies the qualifying home as their principal place of residence
  • In all cases, if you have previously participated in the HBP, you may be able to do so again if your repayable HBP balance on January 1st of the year of the withdrawal is zero and you meet all the other HBP eligibility conditions.

 

3. First-Time Buyer Land Transfer Rebate (LTR): Buying a house in Ontario you are eligible for a rebate as a first-time buyer. The maximum rebate is $4,000 and can be reduced if one buyer doesn’t meet the following requirements:

  • Must be 18 years of age and reside in the home as their principal residence
  • Not owned a home or an interest in a home anywhere in the world
  • Your spouse cannot have owned a home or interest in a home anywhere in the world

Make your mortgage work for you!