Discontinuation of the First-Time Home Buyer Incentive Featured Image

The First-Time Home Buyer Incentive, a program designed to assist qualified first-time homebuyers in reducing their monthly mortgage payments, has been discontinued. This shared-equity mortgage program, offered in partnership with the Government of Canada, aimed to make homeownership more accessible by providing a 5% or 10% incentive for the purchase of newly constructed homes, and a 5% incentive for the purchase of resale (existing) homes or new/resale mobile/manufactured homes.

One of the key features of the First-Time Home Buyer Incentive was its shared equity component, where the government shared in both the upside and downside of the property value, up to a maximum gain or loss of 8% per annum. This meant that homebuyers could afford lower monthly payments by obtaining the incentive, as they did not need to save as much for a down payment.

Homebuyers were required to repay the incentive based on the market value of the home at the time of repayment, equal to the percentage (5% or 10%) of the original home value used to determine the incentive. The repayment had to be made after 25 years or when the property was sold, whichever came first, without incurring a pre-payment penalty.

However, as of the cancellation notice issued by the program, the deadline for new or updated submissions for the First-Time Home Buyer Incentive is midnight ET on March 21, 2024. All new applications and resubmissions for previously cancelled or declined applications must reach the Program Administrator by this date. Applications resubmitted after this date will undergo a manual review, with requests for such reviews required to be submitted no later than March 25, 2024.

While the Program Administrator will continue to process applications received before the deadlines promptly, no new approvals will be granted after March 31, 2024. For approved applications, post-approval changes will be considered following the guidance outlined in the Operational Policy Manual available on the Place to Call Home website.

For further inquiries, please contact FTHBIOps@cmhc-schl.gc.ca.

Posted by Terry Paranych on

Tags

Email Send a link to post via Email

Leave A Comment

e.g. yourwebsitename.com
Please note that your email address is kept private upon posting.