When you start on the path to homeownership, pulling together the sums of money needed for a down payment can seem impossible. Then there are the fees associated with moving in, legal costs, and buying everything you’ll need once you call that home your own. Thankfully, there are several ways you can access financial support to help you make what could be both the biggest purchase and the soundest financial investment of your life.
The Havill’s Spring Market Rebate
Currently, Kent Homes is extending their $5000 cashback incentive to buyers who purchase a new, in-stock mini home before March 31st, 2023. Havill’s is matching this rebate, so when you buy a new mini home with us you will receive $10,000 cash back on closing. This can be used to cover new appliances, any closing costs or serve as a chunk of your down payment, back in your pocket!
The GST/HST New Housing Rebate
When you purchase a newly constructed home with a value of less than $350,000, you’re entitled to a rebate of up to 36% of the GST/HST that you paid on it up to a maximum of $6,300—a welcome rebate that can be deducted right off the purchase price of the home.
The PST First Time Home Buyer’s Provincial Rebate
If you are classified as a first-time home buyer, you can qualify for a PST rebate of up to $3,000 from the NS government, after closing on your brand-new Kent Mini Home. A first-time home buyer is an individual(s) who purchases or builds a newly constructed home and has not owned and occupied a home in Canada in the last five years and where applicable, a relation* or any co-owner occupying the new home has not owned and occupied a home in Canada during this period. If the individual or a relation experienced the destruction of the home they owned and occupied within the last five years, they may also qualify as a first-time home buyer. This rebate is payable directly to you and it goes without saying that this government incentive can help you with whatever you need after moving in!
Access RRSP funds to help with a downpayment
Under the Federal Government’s Home Buyers’ Plan you can withdraw funds of up to $35,000 (or $70,000 as a couple) tax-free to help finance your first home and reduce your borrowing costs. The kicker is that you will need to put that money back into your RRSP over the course of the next 15 years, so you may not want to withdraw the maximum allowed if you can draw on cash from other sources. One interesting, fairly recent change to the Home Buyers’ Plan is that separated or divorced couples can now be classed as first-time home buyers provided they have been living apart due to relationship breakdown for more than 90 days.
Family gifts as downpayments
For many Canadians, it just isn’t feasible to pull together enough money for a downpayment. Some folks are fortunate enough to have relatives willing to gift them funds to cover all or some of the amount needed (and this is a very common way for people to break into the housing market). We’ve had some homebuyers use an advance from their employer, or find funds from an inheritance or through selling a big-ticket item.
If any of these strategies appeal to you, we suggest talking with your financial advisor or mortgage broker, as they’ll be able to give you informed opinions that relate to your unique individual situation. Good luck, and please reach out if you’d like to know more about how we could help you make the move into a beautiful new Kent mini home in 2023.
