The two to understand are GST, which applies to a new home and does not apply to a resale one, and property transfer tax, which is often waived entirely on a newly built home.
The short version
- GST applies to a brand new home bought from a builder. It does not apply to a resale home.
- The first-time home buyers' GST/HST rebate returns up to $50,000 on a new home at or below $1 million, reducing to nothing at $1.5 million.
- The older GST/HST new housing rebate is capped at $6,300 and disappears entirely at a fair market value of $450,000, so it rarely helps a multiplex buyer in Greater Vancouver.
- The Newly Built Home Exemption removes property transfer tax completely up to $1,100,000, with a partial break to $1,150,000.
- The first time home buyers' property transfer tax exemption is a separate programme with its own thresholds, at $835,000 full and $860,000 partial.
GST on a brand new home
A newly built home sold by a builder is subject to GST. A resale home is not. That single difference is worth tens of thousands of dollars on a Greater Vancouver purchase, and it is the reason the rebates below exist.
Check first whether the price you were quoted includes GST or excludes it. Both are common, and the answer changes what you need on completion day by a substantial amount. It will be stated in the purchase agreement.
The first-time buyers' GST rebate
This is the significant one for anybody buying their first home in this market. Bill C-4 received royal assent on 13 March 2026, and the Canada Revenue Agency now describes the first-time home buyers' GST/HST rebate as returning up to 100 per cent of the GST, to a maximum of $50,000, on a new home valued at or below $1 million. Between $1 million and $1.5 million the maximum rebate is gradually reduced, and at or above $1.5 million there is no rebate at all.
The reduction is linear, and the CRA gives a worked example: a new home bought for $1.25 million sits at the midpoint between $1 million and $1.5 million, so it qualifies for 50 per cent of the $50,000 maximum, which is a rebate of $25,000 when all the other conditions are met.
The eligibility test is stricter than most buyers assume. The CRA requires you to be at least 18, a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, and to not have lived in a home that you or your spouse or common law partner owned, anywhere in the world, as your primary place of residence at any time in the calendar year or in the previous four calendar years. For a purchase from a builder, you must meet that test on the date ownership is transferred to you.
| Price of the new home | Maximum rebate |
|---|---|
| At or below $1,000,000 | Up to $50,000, being 100% of the GST |
| $1,250,000 | $25,000, being 50% of the maximum |
| Between $1,000,000 and $1,500,000 | Reduced gradually as the price rises |
| At or above $1,500,000 | No rebate |
Source: Canada Revenue Agency, first-time home buyers' GST/HST rebate, page updated 30 March 2026. The $1,250,000 row is the CRA's own worked example.
The older GST rebate, and why it rarely applies here
There is a second, longer standing programme called the GST/HST new housing rebate. It is worth knowing about mainly so that you are not counting on it.
Under that rebate, as set out in the CRA's guide RC4028, the federal amount is 36 per cent of the GST paid up to a maximum of $6,300, it is available in full where the fair market value is $350,000 or less, it reduces between $350,000 and $450,000, and there is no rebate at all once the value reaches $450,000.
There is effectively no new multiplex home in Vancouver or Burnaby priced below $450,000, so for our buyers this programme is history rather than help. The first-time buyers' rebate is the one that matters.
Property transfer tax, and the exemption for new homes
British Columbia charges property transfer tax on the fair market value at these rates: 1 per cent on the value up to and including $200,000, 2 per cent on the portion above $200,000 up to and including $2,000,000, 3 per cent on the portion above $2,000,000, and a further 2 per cent on residential property valued over $3,000,000.
The Newly Built Home Exemption removes that tax entirely on a newly built home with a fair market value up to $1,100,000, and gives a partial exemption between $1,100,000 and $1,150,000. Those thresholds took effect on 1 April 2024. You must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, the property must be your principal residence and no larger than half a hectare, you must move in within 92 days of registration, and you must keep living there as your principal residence up to the first anniversary of registration.
The first time home buyers' programme is separate and has its own numbers: a full exemption where the fair market value is $835,000 or less, applied to the first $500,000 of the price, and a partial exemption between $835,000 and $860,000. It carries additional conditions, including that you have never owned a principal residence anywhere in the world and have never previously received this exemption.
| Programme | Full exemption | Partial exemption | Key condition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newly Built Home Exemption | Up to $1,100,000 | $1,100,000 to $1,150,000 | Brand new home, principal residence, move in within 92 days |
| First Time Home Buyers' Programme | Up to $835,000 | $835,000 to $860,000 | Never owned a principal residence anywhere |
Source: Province of British Columbia. Both sets of thresholds took effect 1 April 2024, checked 29 August 2026.
The rest of completion day
Beyond the price and the taxes, expect legal or notary fees, a title registration charge, adjustments for anything the seller has prepaid such as strata fees or property tax for the remainder of the period, and your own home insurance which must be in place before your lender will fund.
Your lawyer or notary will send you a statement of adjustments listing all of it, usually a few days before completion. Read it against your contract rather than assuming it is right, and ask about anything you do not recognise. It is a lot easier to query a figure before the money moves.
One practical note that saves grief every time: ask your lawyer exactly when the funds need to arrive and in what form. Bank drafts and wire transfers have cut off times, and a transfer sent on the morning of completion can arrive after the registry has closed.
Working out what you need in cash
The number that matters to a buyer is not the price. It is the cash you have to produce on completion day, and it is easy to calculate once you know which items apply to you.
Start with the price. Subtract the deposits you have already paid into trust, because those come off what is owed. Subtract the mortgage your lender has approved. What is left is the balance you fund yourself. Then add property transfer tax if no exemption applies, add GST if your price was quoted before tax and you cannot claim it back at completion, and add legal fees, the title registration charge and the adjustments. That total is your cash requirement.
Two traps sit in that calculation. The first is a GST rebate you assume you will get and do not qualify for, which on a home near $1 million is a five figure difference. Check the eligibility conditions against your own situation rather than against the headline. The second is mortgage insurance, which is usually added to the loan rather than paid in cash, so it does not increase what you need on the day but does increase what you owe afterwards.
Do this arithmetic yourself, on paper, before you rely on anyone else's summary. Then ask your lawyer to confirm it against the statement of adjustments when it arrives. Two independent calculations that agree is a good place to be a week before completion.
Questions buyers ask
More in Pre-Sale Guide
Also worth reading
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page comes from the body that issues it. Rules and rates change, so each entry says when we checked it.
- What is the first-time home buyers' GST/HST rebate. Canada Revenue Agency. Page updated 30 March 2026, accessed 29 August 2026.
- Who can apply: first-time home buyers' GST/HST rebate. Canada Revenue Agency. Accessed 29 August 2026.
- Guide RC4028, GST/HST New Housing Rebate. Canada Revenue Agency. Revision 26, accessed 29 August 2026.
- Property transfer tax rates. Province of British Columbia. Accessed 29 August 2026.
- Newly Built Home Exemption. Province of British Columbia. Thresholds effective 1 April 2024, accessed 29 August 2026.
- First Time Home Buyers' Program. Province of British Columbia. Thresholds effective 1 April 2024, accessed 29 August 2026.
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