The First-Time Home Buyers Incentive is meant to help Canadians with housing affordability. But unfortunately for Torontonians, the program won’t make a difference for those hoping to buy a house in the city.
That’s because the restrictions of the incentive put a price cap on the homes Canadians can purchase. Only those with a household income of less than $120,000 are eligible for the program. Additionally, the mortgage cannot exceed more than four times that income, or up to $480,000.
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That means the most expensive home that could be bought with the incentive is between $500,000 and $600,000, depending on the down payment, Global News reports.
For an expensive market like Toronto, that renders all houses ineligible. The average home price in Toronto in May was $937,804, according to Zoocasa.
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The real estate listings site analyzed the average house prices in the City of Toronto to find out where the incentive would be most beneficial. Unsurprisingly, the average price in the entire city exceeds $505,000, which would be the price cap for a home with a five per cent down payment.
Scarborough’s Morningside, Woburn, and Bendale neighbourhoods ranked the most affordable, but their average prices were still more than $250,000 above the cap. The average house price in these areas is $762,175.
On the other side of the spectrum, Rosedale and Moore Park ranked the least affordable, averaging $3.56 million.
But not all hope is lost. Those interested in owning a Toronto condo could still see their dreams of homeownership become a reality.
READ: Affordable Units Could Soon Become Mandatory In All Toronto Condos
First-time homeowners would benefit from the incentive when buying a condo in one of 13 Toronto neighbourhoods, Zoocasa found. The most affordable area is West Hill and Centennial Scarborough (a.k.a. Port Union) where condos go for an average of $352,389, followed by Malvern and Rouge, where prices average $362,027.
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Bathurst Manor and Clanton Park are the most expensive neighbourhoods a Torontonian could purchase a condo with the help of the incentive. On average, condo prices here are roughly $2,000 shy of $500,000.
Take a look at Zoocasa’s infographics below to see where else Torontonians could qualify for a condo with the new First-Time Home Buyers Incentive.
