Economy

How to Buy a home in Canada

Published

3 years ago

June 10, 2021

Homeownership can be very exciting, but it isn’t always the best thing for everyone. Before you decide to buy a home, make sure you carefully consider the costs.

According to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), your monthly housing costs should not be more than about 35% of your gross monthly income. This includes costs such as mortgage payments and utilities.

Your entire monthly debt load should not be more than 42% of your gross monthly income. This includes your mortgage payments and all your other debts.

Use CMHC’s step-by-step guide to help you decide if homeownership is right for you.

Saving for your home

To buy a home, you need a down payment. You also need money to pay for the upfront costs.

Make saving part of your monthly budget. Most employers deposit your pay directly into your chequing or savings account. Increase your chances of reaching your savings goals by setting up automatic transfers to a savings account each pay cheque.

Use the Financial Goal Calculator to help you determine how long it will take you to reach your savings goals.

Saving with a Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA)

A TFSA is an account that lets you save or invest your money tax-free. You won’t pay tax on money you withdraw from your TFSA. You can also use your TFSA to help you buy a home.

Find out about TFSAs.

Saving with a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP)

An RRSP is an account that allows you to save money for your retirement. You don’t pay taxes on your savings until you withdraw money from the RRSP.

Find out about RRSPs.

The Home Buyers’ Plan (HBP)

If you’re a first-time homebuyer, the HBP allows you to withdraw up to $35,000 from your RRSPs tax-free to put toward buying your first home.

Learn more on how to participate in the Home Buyers’ Plan.

The First-Time Home Buyer Incentive

This incentive offers 5% or 10% of your home’s purchase price to put towards a down payment.

Learn more about the First-Time Home Buyer Incentive.

Using savings and investment

If you plan to buy a home in the near future, focus on building your savings. You’ll want to keep your money protected and easily accessible.

Short-term savings and investment options may include:

savings accounts
short-term guaranteed investment certificates (GIC)
low-risk mutual funds

Ask your financial institution or advisor about the short-term investments they offer and how they work.

Learn more about setting savings and investments goals.

Paying for your home

Most people need to borrow money to buy a home. You also need to put some of your own money into the purchase.

Down payment

When you buy a home, you must put a certain amount of money toward the purchase upfront. This is called a down payment. Your mortgage loan will cover the rest of the price.

Find out how much of a down payment you need to purchase a home.

Mortgage process

A mortgage is likely the biggest loan you get in your lifetime. It’s important that you understand the process.

Check your credit report before you apply for a mortgage

A potential lender considers your credit history before they decide whether or not to approve your mortgage application.

Before you start shopping around for a mortgage:

Shop around for a mortgage

Lenders may have different interest rates and conditions for similar mortgages. Talk to several lenders to find the best mortgage for your needs.

You can get a mortgage from:

Mortgage lenders – These institutions lend money directly to you. Explore the different types of lenders that are available, including banks and credit unions.

Mortgage brokers – They don’t lend money directly to you. Mortgage brokers arrange transactions by finding a lender for you. Since brokers have access to many lenders, they may give you a wider range of mortgages to choose from. The lender pays a commission to the mortgage brokers, so there’s no cost to you.

Find a local certified mortgage broker with Mortgage Professionals Canada.

Find out about getting pre-approved and qualified for a mortgage.

Get the mortgage that meets your needs

Mortgages have different features to meet different needs. It’s important that you understand the options and features.

Questions you should ask yourself include:

do you want a mortgage with a fixed interest rate or one that can rise or fall
how long of a term do you want
how often would you like to make payments toward your mortgage

Find a mortgage that is right for you.

Mortgage loan insurance

If your down payment is less than 20% of your home’s price, you need to purchase mortgage loan insurance. In some cases, you may need to get mortgage loan insurance even if you have a 20% down payment.

Mortgage loan insurance protects the mortgage lender in case you’re not able to make your mortgage payments. It does not protect you. Mortgage loan insurance is also sometimes called mortgage default insurance.

Optional mortgage life, critical illness, disability and employment insurance

Your lender may ask whether you would like to purchase life, critical illness, disability and employment insurance.

These products that can help make mortgage payments, or can help pay off the remainder owing on your mortgage, if you:

lose your job
become injured or disabled
become critically ill
die

There are important exemptions for each of these insurance products. An exemption is something not covered by your insurance policy. Read the insurance certificate before you apply to understand what this insurance covers.

These insurance products are optional. You don’t need to purchase this insurance coverage for your mortgage to be approved. You must clearly agree to sign up for this insurance before the lender charges you for it.

Learn more about optional mortgage insurance products.

Tax credits for homebuyers

The Government of Canada offers two tax credits for specific types of homebuyers. Your provincial or territorial government may also offer other home-buying incentives.

The Home buyers’ amount

You get access to this tax credit when you purchase your first home and submit a tax return. It’s an effective means of offsetting some of the upfront costs associated with buying a home. Eligible homebuyers may receive a tax credit of up to $750.

Find out if you’re eligible for the Home buyers’amount.

GST/HST housing rebates

Generally speaking, sales of new homes are subject to the GST/HST. You may qualify for a rebate for some of the tax you paid.

Learn more about the GST/HST housing rebates that may be available to you.

Moving expenses

You may move into a new home to work or run a business in a new location. You can deduct eligible moving expenses from the employment or self-employment income that you earn in the new location.

Find out if you’re eligible to claim moving expenses.

Home buying costs

When you buy a home, you have to pay for upfront costs in addition to your mortgage. These are called closing costs. You can expect to spend between 1.5% and 4% of the home’s purchase price on closing costs. You usually pay these costs by the time the sale is completed or “closes”.

Legal costs

You have to pay legal fees on your closing day. This is the day that your home purchase is complete. These fees are usually range between $400 to $2,500 but will vary depending on your lawyer’s or notary’s rates.

A lawyer or notary can help protect your legal interests. They make sure that the home you want to buy does not have a lien against it. A lien is a legal claim over another person’s property that someone files to ensure a debt gets paid.

A lawyer or notary reviews all contracts before you sign them. They also review your offer or agreement to purchase.

Home insurance

You must have home insurance in place as a condition of getting a mortgage.

Home insurance can help protect your home and its contents. It typically covers the inside and outside of your home in case of theft, loss or damage.

Learn more about how home insurance works and the different types that are available.

Land registration

Before the sale closes, you’re required to pay to register your property’s title under your name. This may be called a land transfer tax, a deed registration fee, a tariff, or a property transfer tax.

The cost is a percentage of the home’s purchase price. For example, if your land transfer tax is 1.5% and your home cost $300,000, you pay $4,500.

Adjustment costs

The seller of the home you’re buying may be entitled to adjustments. For example, the seller may have already paid the property tax on the home past the purchase closing date. If that’s the case, the seller receives a credit on the closing date. You must then pay this credit amount to cover the money already paid by the seller.

New build GST/HST

Generally, if you buy a new build home, you pay GST or HST. Some builders include the HST in their sale price while others don’t. Make sure to check. Otherwise, you have to pay this cost upfront on closing day.

Other closing costs

Other closing costs may include:

interest adjustments (period between your purchase date and your first mortgage payment)
Certificate of Location cost
estoppel certificate (for condominium units)
township or municipal levies (may apply to new homes in subdivisions)
mortgage default insurance premium (if paying premium up front instead of adding it to mortgage loan)
provincial sales tax on premiums for mortgage default insurance (applicable in some provinces)

Other home-buying costs

Other costs you may need to budget for include:

Home appraisal

Mortgage lenders may ask you to have an appraisal done as part of the mortgage approval process.

An appraiser provides a professional opinion about the market value of the home you want to buy. An appraisal fee is generally between $350 and $500.

For more information on the appraisal process, read the guide from the Appraisal Institute of Canada.

Home inspection

An inspector provides a comprehensive visual inspection of a home’s overall structure, major systems and components such as:

electrical and plumbing systems
the foundation
the roof

CMHC recommends that you include a home inspection as a condition when you make an offer.

Use tips from the Office of Consumer Affairs to find an inspector and learn about home inspections.

Moving costs

Before moving in, you may also have to pay for:

moving costs
storage costs
real estate costs for selling your home (if applicable)
redirecting mail

Find out what to consider when choosing a moving company, and how to plan for moving day costs.

Once you move in, you may immediately face other costs, including:

utility hook-up fees
basic furniture and appliances
painting and cleaning
water tests
septic tank tests (if applicable)

Use this home purchase cost estimate form to estimate your home-buying costs.

Working with a real estate agent

Using a realtor is optional. A realtor typically searches for homes, negotiates a purchase price, fills out and file paperwork, and more.

The seller pays the realtor’s fees when you buy a home.

Learn more about a realtor’s involvement in the home-buying process.

Home buying and newcomers to Canada

CMHC has a guide with comprehensive information on housing for newcomers.

Consult Buying Your First Home in Canada: What newcomers need to know.

Buying a condominium

Condominiums, or condos, are shared properties that contain individual housing units. Each unit has its own owner. Owners share the common areas outside of the unit such as the lobby and parking lot.

There are pros and cons to owning a condo. For example, if you buy a condo, you pay monthly condo fees. However, you may like the idea of sharing the building maintenance costs with the other unit owners.

Learn about condo fees and other ongoing costs of maintaining a home.

Use this Condominium Buyers Guide for tips on what to consider before buying.

Buying to rent

You can buy a property with the intention of renting it out. Keep in mind that you have to declare your rental income at tax time each year.

Find out how to calculate your rental income and which expenses you can deduct.

Source: Financial Consumer Agency of Canada

Economy

Construction wraps on indoor supervised site for people who inhale drugs in Vancouver

Published

13 hours ago

September 18, 2024

Anne Joseph

VANCOUVER – Supervised injection sites are saving the lives of drug users everyday, but the same support is not being offered to people who inhale illicit drugs, the head of the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS says.

Dr. Julio Montaner said the construction of Vancouver’s first indoor supervised site for people who inhale drugs comes as the percentage of people who die from smoking drugs continues to climb.

The location in the Downtown Eastside at the Hope to Health Research and Innovation Centre was unveiled Wednesday after construction was complete, and Montaner said people could start using the specialized rooms in a matter of weeks after final approvals from the city and federal government.

“If we don’t create mechanisms for these individuals to be able to use safely and engage with the medical system, and generate points of entry into the medical system, we will never be able to solve the problem,” he said.

“Now, I’m not here to tell you that we will fix it tomorrow, but denying it or ignoring it, or throw it under the bus, or under the carpet is no way to fix it, so we need to take proactive action.”

Nearly two-thirds of overdose deaths in British Columbia in 2023 came after smoking illicit drugs, yet only 40 per cent of supervised consumption sites in the province offer a safe place to smoke, often outdoors, in a tent.

The centre has been running a supervised injection site for years which sees more than a thousand people monthly and last month resuscitated five people who were overdosing.

The new facilities offer indoor, individual, negative-pressure rooms that allow fresh air to circulate and can clear out smoke in 30 to 60 seconds while users are monitored by trained nurses.

Advocates calling for more supervised inhalation sites have previously said the rules for setting up sites are overly complicated at a time when the province is facing an overdose crisis.

More than 15,000 people have died of overdoses since the public health emergency was declared in B.C. in April 2016.

Kate Salters, a senior researcher at the centre, said they worked with mechanical and chemical engineers to make sure the site is up to code and abidies by the highest standard of occupational health and safety.

“This is just another tool in our tool box to make sure that we’re offering life-saving services to those who are using drugs,” she said.

Montaner acknowledged the process to get the site up and running took “an inordinate amount of time,” but said the centre worked hard to follow all regulations.

“We feel that doing this right, with appropriate scientific background, in a medically supervised environment, etc, etc, allows us to derive the data that ultimately will be sufficiently convincing for not just our leaders, but also the leaders across the country and across the world, to embrace the strategies that we are trying to develop.” he said.

Montaner said building the facility was possible thanks to a single $4-million donation from a longtime supporter.

Construction finished with less than a week before the launch of the next provincial election campaign and within a year of the next federal election.

Montaner said he is concerned about “some of the things that have been said publicly by some of the political leaders in the province and in the country.”

“We want to bring awareness to the people that this is a serious undertaking. This is a very massive investment, and we need to protect it for the benefit of people who are unfortunately drug dependent.” he said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2024.

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Economy

N.B. election: Parties’ answers on treaty rights, taxes, Indigenous participation

Published

13 hours ago

September 18, 2024

Anne Joseph

FREDERICTON – The six chiefs of the Wolastoqey Nation in New Brunswick distributed a survey on Indigenous issues to political parties ahead of the provincial election, which is scheduled to kick off Thursday. Here are some of the answers from the Progressive Conservative, Liberal and Green parties.

Q: How does your party plan to demonstrate a renewed commitment to recognizing our joint treaty responsibilities and acknowledging that the lands and waters of this territory remain unceded?

Progressive Conservative: The party respectfully disagrees with the assertion that land title has been unceded. This is a legal question that has not been determined by the courts.

Liberal: When we form government, the first conversations the premier-designate will have is with First Nations leaders. We will publicly and explicitly acknowledge your treaty rights, and our joint responsibility as treaty people.

Green: The Green Party acknowledges that New Brunswick is situated on the unceded and unsurrendered territories of the Wolastoqiyik, Mi’kmaq and Peskotomuhkati peoples, covered by the Treaties of Peace and Friendship. Our party is committed to establishing true nation-to-nation relationships with First Nations, grounded in mutual respect and co-operation as the treaties intended.

Q: How does your party propose to approach the issue of provincial tax agreements with First Nations?

Progressive Conservative: The government of New Brunswick operates in a balanced and fair manner with all organizations, institutions and local governments that represent the citizens of this province, including First Nations. Therefore, we cannot offer tax agreements that do not demonstrate a benefit to all citizens.

Liberal: Recent discussions with First Nations chiefs shed light on the gaps that existed in the previous provincial tax agreements with First Nations. Our party is committed to negotiating and establishing new tax agreements with First Nations that address the local needs and priorities and ensure all parties have a fair deal.

Green: The Green Party is committed to fostering a respectful relationship with First Nations in New Brunswick and strongly opposes Premier Blaine Higgs’s decision to end tax-sharing agreements. We believe reinstating these agreements is crucial for supporting the economic development and job creation in First Nation communities.

Q: How will your party ensure more meaningful participation of Indigenous communities in provincial land use and resource management decision-making?

Progressive Conservative: The government of New Brunswick has invested significant resources in developing a robust duty to consult and engagement process. We are interested in fully involving First Nations in the development of natural resources, including natural gas development. We believe that the development of natural gas is better for the environment — because it allows for the shutdown of coal-fired power plants all over the globe — and it allows for a meaningful step along the path to reconciliation.

Liberal: Our party is focused on building strong relations with First Nations and their representatives based on mutual respect and a nation-to-nation relationship, with a shared understanding of treaty obligations and a recognition of your rights. This includes having First Nations at the table and engaged on all files, including land-use and resource management.

Green: We will develop a new Crown lands management framework with First Nations, focusing on shared management that respects the Peace and Friendship Treaties. We will enhance consultation by developing parameters for meaningful consultation with First Nations that will include a dispute resolution mechanism, so the courts become the last resort, not the default in the face of disagreements.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2024.

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Economy

Canadian Coast Guard crew member lost at sea off Newfoundland

Published

13 hours ago

September 18, 2024

Anne Joseph

ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – A crew member of a Canadian Coast Guard ship has been lost at sea off southern Newfoundland.

The agency said in a release Wednesday that an extensive search and rescue effort for the man was ended Tuesday evening.

He was reported missing on Monday morning when the CCGS Vincent Massey arrived in St. John’s, N.L.

The coast guard says there was an “immediate” search on the vessel for the crew member and when he wasn’t located the sea and air search began.

Wednesday’s announcement said the agency was “devastated to confirm” the crew member had been lost at sea, adding that decisions to end searches are “never taken lightly.”

The coast guard says the employee was last seen on board Sunday evening as the vessel sailed along the northeast coast of Newfoundland.

Spokeswoman Kariane Charron says no other details are being provided at this time and that the RCMP will be investigating the matter as a missing person case.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 18, 2024.

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