First Time Home Buyer’s Property Transfer Tax Exemption

To qualify as a first time homebuyer, the property being purchased must be the purchaser’s primary residence and the purchaser must:

• have never owned property in which they resided, anywhere in the world;
• be a Canadian Citizen or Permanent Resident of Canada (Note: If this status is obtained within a year after buying, the tax must be paid but can be refunded if applied for within 18 months of the registration date.);
• have resided continuously in British Columbia for at least one year prior to the registration date or have filed income tax returns as a resident of British Columbia for two of the past six taxation years immediately prior to the registration date.
• the total purchase price must not exceed $475,000. A decreasing partial tax exemption applies to properties valued between $475,000 and $500,000.

These are the basic qualifications at June 2014.  For a more detailed explanation regarding your specific circumstances please contact Ron Morin directly.

Tip:

In the case of two first time buyers, consider only one of them going on title and the other guaranteeing the mortgage. This way the other might get the exemption on a subsequent purchase. An unregistered Title Transfer can be done between the two parties for estate planning and actual ownership confirmation purposes.