First-time buyers
See which programs apply to you.
Source: gov.bc.ca and canada.ca.
Answer four questions and enter a price.
At this price $800,000
Estimates only. Each program has more conditions.
Source: gov.bc.ca and canada.ca.
Most can be used together. You can claim only one transfer tax exemption.
Up to $8,000
No transfer tax on the first $500,000 for a home up to $835,000. It ends at $860,000.
Up to $20,000
No transfer tax on a newly built home up to $1,100,000. It ends at $1,150,000.
Up to $40,000
Save $8,000 a year, tax-deductible, and take it out tax-free.
Up to $60,000
Withdraw from your RRSP tax-free and repay over 15 years.
$1,400
A $10,000 tax credit, worth $1,400.
Up to $50,000
All the GST back on a new home up to $1,000,000. It ends at $1,500,000.
$344 a month lower
30 years instead of 25, on a $800,000 home at the illustrative posted five-year rate of 5.19%. Total interest is higher.
A first-time buyer with $80,000 down (10%) on a resale condo. The minimum down payment at this price is $55,000: 5% of the first $500,000 and 10% of the rest.
| Program | Dollar effect | How |
|---|---|---|
| BC property transfer tax exemption | $8,000 saved | Tax of $14,000 falls to $6,000 because the first $500,000 is exempt at this price. |
| RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan | Up to $60,000 each | A couple can draw $120,000 tax-free toward the $80,000 down payment, repaid over 15 years. |
| First Home Savings Account | Up to $40,000 each | Tax-deductible in, tax-free out. |
| Home Buyers’ Amount | $1,400 back | A $10,000 claim on your return at the 14% lowest federal rate for 2026. |
| 30-year insured amortization | $344 a month lower | At the illustrative posted five-year rate of 5.19%: $4,398 over 25 years against $4,054 over 30. The CMHC premium rises from $22,320 to $23,760, and total interest is higher. |
| First-time buyer GST rebate | $0 on a resale | No GST on a resale condo. The same price as a new build carries $40,000 of GST, all of it rebated. |
Check transfer tax and closing costs at your price: cost of buying a home in BC.
Program figures are read from gov.bc.ca, canada.ca, and cmhc-schl.gc.ca and were last verified on 2026-10-06. The posted five-year rate is illustrative, not a quote. Ray Rasouli is a licensed REALTOR®, not a lender or an accountant; this is general information, not financial advice.
Your lawyer or notary claims the transfer tax exemption. Your bank and the CRA handle the FHSA and Home Buyers’ Plan.
They do not change the price, the minimum down payment or the stress test at your contract rate plus 2%, or 5.25%, whichever is higher.
Up to $60,000 per person, tax-free. You repay it over 15 years.
$8,000 a year, up to $40,000 in total. Contributions are tax-deductible, and withdrawals for a first home are tax-free.
Yes, since March 12, 2026. A first-time buyer gets all 5% GST back, up to $50,000, on a new home up to $1,000,000. It ends at $1,500,000.
Yes, on insured mortgages since December 15, 2024. On an $800,000 condo at the illustrative posted five-year rate of 5.19%, the payment is about $344 a month lower than 25 years. Total interest is higher.
The BC transfer tax exemption needs you never to have owned a principal residence. The federal programs allow it if you have not lived in a home you or your spouse owned this year or the previous 4.
Written and maintained by Ray Rasouli, REALTOR®, licensed in British Columbia and founder of Relta Real Estate.
Source: Program rules published by the Government of British Columbia, the CRA and CMHC.
Program figures verified against gov.bc.ca, canada.ca and cmhc-schl.gc.ca on 2026-10-06. Each program has conditions beyond the ones the check asks about; confirm yours with the program, your lender or your conveyancer. General information, not tax, legal or financial advice.