Whether you are striving to purchase your first home, or simply maintain your existing home, there are financial assistance programs available from the Canadian government.

Becoming more aware of the help available will likely save you thousand of dollars.

Some of the programs available for homeowners all across Canada are described below. It is to your advantage to investigate these as doing so will likely save you not just money, but also time.

How you Can Get Canadian Governemt Assistance

It’s important to make sure that all structural and essential systems in your home are in a good working order. The Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program (RRAP) is an initiative that was set up in 1973 by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) to help low-income homeowners make repairs that would bring their properties up to an adequate standard of living.

This program covers repairs for heating systems, electrical issues, plumbing, and various other structural problems. But there is a limit to how much financial aid a homeowner can receive through RRAP, and it depends on your geographical location.

Maximum aid available for residents in the southern portion of the country is approximately $16,000, while those living in the far north can receive up to $24,000. If the cost of repairs exceeds the maximum loan amount in your area, you will have to make up the difference.

How to Qualify for Financial Assistance

To qualify for RRAP, your income must be lower than the income threshold, as determined by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

Your home must be more than five years old, and the property value must not exceed the limit set by CMHC.

If you’re eligible for funding through RRAP, you are not obligated to repay the loan if you stay in the house during the loan forgiveness period, which could be up to five years, depending on the terms of your agreement.

Government Help and and the Emergency Repair Program

The CMHC has another program designed to assist homeowners with repair costs, called the Emergency Repair Program. To qualify, repairs must be deemed urgent to make the house safe for habitation.

This includes repairs to heating and electrical systems, foundations, roofs, and perhaps other issues.

With the Emergency Repair Program, only emergency repairs are made, regardless of the habitability of the rest of the home, whereas with the Residential Rehabilitation Assistance Program, the entire property must be brought to a minimum standard of safety and livability.

The maximum funding offered through the Emergency Repair Program ranges from $6,000 to $11,000.

Make your Home More Energy Efficient and Get Grants

If are only looking for financial help in making your home more energy efficient, there’s the ecoENERGY Retrofit program. This initiative provides grants for owners of detached and multi family dwellings who modify their properties to be more environmentally friendly.

To receive this grant, owners must first have their properties inspected and evaluated by a representative from Natural Resources Canada. They will compare the energy efficiency of your home with comparable homes in the area, as well as make recommendations for retrofits.

Once the work is completed, you will receive a second assessment to determine the improved energy efficiency of your home.

 The amount of funding you receive will depend upon what modifications you make, and how much impact they have on the total energy efficiency of the home.

The GST and HST Housing Rebate for Canadians

The GST/HST New Housing Rebate is for Canadians who are building a new home or are buying a newly constructed home from a builder. The program also applies to homeowners who have performed a significant amount of renovations on their existing property, as well as those who have been forced to rebuild after a house fire.

This rebate returns to you a portion of the GST costs involved with purchasing new construction. The amount of rebate you’re eligible to receive depends on the value of your home. Properties worth more than $450,000 are not eligible for this rebate.

Getting Help with your Down Payment from the Canadian Government

If you need additional cash to put towards the down payment of a house or to help cover the building costs of a new home, the Canada Revenue Agency has made it somewhat easier to borrow from your RRSP. If you can meet their criteria as a first time home buyer, you can borrow up to $20,000 from you Registered Retirement Savings Plan-tax-free-through the Home Buyers’ Plan.

There are additional programs throughout Canada that provide financial support to seniors and homeowners with disabilities who need to modify their homes to improve accessibility.

There are also provincial programs that help buyers and homeowners deal with the costs of home ownership, and to make it a little easier for low income families to live in safe and comfortable houses.

If you are attempting to buy your first home, any tips that can save you money and perhaps even thousands of dollars are well worth investigating. Investigate these tips and make your first home purchase worthwhile and reduce your costs.

EcoEnergy Retrofit Grant

The Canadian federal government’s ecoEnergy Retrofit grant program can be invaluable to homeowners who want to lower their current energy costs, or who are thinking of putting their home on the market soon.

Canada’s Government introduces Home Buyer Tax Incentives

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Home Owners and Buyers will benefit from the ecoEnergy Retrofit Program

Here is a break-down of how the new budget will help home-owners as well as home-buyers. The budget also builds on the existing ecoENERGY Retrofit program, which provides property owners grants of up to $5000 to offset the cost of making energy-efficiency improvements, such as upgrading insulation.

ecoEnergy Program Buyers And Home Owners

The maximum grant per home is $10,000… $5,000 from the Province and $5,000 from Natural Resources Canada. For example, if you replace your furnace, there’s up to $1,200 available, for attic insulation up to $1200 and so on.

Home Renovation Tax Credit (HRTC)

Will the credit be reduced by other government grants or credits that I may receive for the same expenditures? No.

The Canadian federal and Ontario provincial governments introduced the Affordable Housing Program in 2005 to assist low and moderate income residents. There are four components to the AHP agreement: Rental and Supportive, Housing Allowance/Rent Supplement, Northern Housing and Homeownership.

For a first time home buyer, the Homeownership component is likely the most important. With this program, lower-income renters in the province of Ontario may apply to receive an interest free down payment loan to assist in purchasing a home.

An Interest Free Loan from the Canadian Government

According to the AHP, each region in Ontario is allocated a specific amount of funding in order to assist low to moderate income rental households in purchasing affordable homes using interest free down payment assistance loans.

It is the responsibility of each municipality within the province to determine the amount of the loan for each potential purchaser, in accordance with the program requirements.

Are You Eligible?

An applicant must be at least 18 years of age and have a maximum household income at or below the stated maximum eligible income limit for the particular area. The maximum household income is presently $75,800 under the program and is dependent on the specific municipality. Approved applicants can receive a loan up to $8,500 to be applied towards a down payment on the purchase price of an eligible home.

Equally important is that an applicant that alreadys owns a property, either solely or partly is not eligible for an interest free loan under the AHP Homeownership guidelines. This does not mean that you are uneligible if you previously owned a residence, only that you must not presently own one.

Type of Homes that you Can Buy

The home may be new or a resale. The home must have a selling price at or below the maximum selling pricing specified for the municipality. This ranges from $143,523 to a maximum of $389,600 and is updated quarterly based on recent resale prices. The property must be relatively modest in size and features, relative to community standards.

There must also be no conflict of interest relating to ownership of the home. In other words, an applicant or any member of the applicant’s family must not have an ownership interest in the property.

The AHP Homeownership Application

Suitable forms are available from the housing department of your municipality and must be submitted with required and complete documentation. You will require the following:

• AHP Homeownership Application form
• Photo Identification
• Proof of Household Income
• Agreement of Purchase and Sale
• Proof of Mortgage Approval by Primary Lending Institution

Note that the last point means that you must be able to secure mortgage financing through a lending institution before you submit your application.

Terms of the AHP Loan

An AHP loan is for a period of 20 years and no interest is charged on the loan. The property must remain the sole and principal resident of the applicant for the entire twenty year period. It may not be leased to any other party.

On the 20th anniversary date of the agreement, the loan is automatically forgiven, provided there has been no default under the terms of the loan. If the home is sold before the 20 year period is up, or the loan becomes in default, the amount of the assistance plus a percentage of any capital gain realized via the sale may be payable to the municipality.

If the property is sold for less than the purchase price, the down payment assistance would be waived if it is sold at fair market value and the sale is an arm’s length transaction.

The AHP loan can be repaid at anytime during the 20 year period. It is the responsibility of the owner to repay the loan in full in addition to a percentage of the appreciated value of the home based on current market values at that time.

The amount of the Homeownership loan provided by the AHP will be secured on title through an AHP mortgage and as stated, no interest is charged on it. On the closing date, the AHP loan is provided and put towards the down payment on the home.

If you are a Canadian resident and reside in the province of Ontario it is to your advantage to seek out this interest free loan. If you are a first time home buyer and meet the requirements, having an additional $8,500 to assist in your new home purchase can certainly be of benefit.

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