Hi everyone and welcome to the first edition of Jordan’s blogs.

Today we will be discussing first-time buyers and what to know before starting your real estate journey.

Did you know there are different types of offers and assistance available to those looking to buy property for the first time?

There are three important programs to know about when buying property in Ontario for the first time. They are the ‘First Time Buyers’ home incentive, the Home Buyers’ Amount tax credit and HBP, also known as the Home Buyers Plan.

First Time Buyers home incentive

This incentive is eligible to first time buyers and they must be a Canadian citizen and also fall under certain brackets of income (this amount varies across provinces, but is around $150,000 or less). As well, they must be qualified to pay the minimum down payment amount.

Although some repayment may be required after 25 years, once you qualify you could potentially be eligible for up to 5%-10% back of your purchase price.

Home Buyers Tax Credit

If you are looking for financial assistance with your taxes or property fees you may be eligible to qualify for this credit. There are various eligibility considerations you would need to look into but you may be able to obtain up to $750 to help pay off your property related closing costs (such as disbursements, legal fees and land transfer taxes).

Home Buyers Plan

The Home buyers plan allow a potential first-time property buyer to withdraw funds from their RRSP’s on a tax differed basis. If you are a married couple who qualifies, you can withdraw and differ up to $70,000 ($35,000 each) and put it towards the property purchase.

Always keep in mind, like some of the other assistance programs, although it may be a long period of time, repayments may be necessary, and it is always important to know the fine print and details of your contract before moving forward.

Check out this chart below for some tips and ideas before moving forward with your very first property purchase:

Now that you’ve gone over some of the important things to know before buying, it is time to discuss the most important one of them all, choosing the right real estate agent. The right agent could be the difference in thousands of dollars on a sale or purchase. As well, working with someone who has a strong knowledge of the industry and understands the ebbs and flows of the ever-changing housing market, can completely change your experience, and potentially save you from a bad purchase, or lead you towards one you may have never thought possible.

As you can see on this chart below, property sales during the recent months of 2022 have decreased, this could be a sign that it is time to sell before things get worse, or perhaps wait a few months and see what happens with the market. A good agent will always guide you correctly.

By doing your research on assistance programs and also choosing the right agent for the job, you can guarantee yourself success not only with the purchase of your new property but also with the potential sale of your current one.

For a free consultation or more information, call today!