HST & GST Housing Rebate
The Greater Toronto Area’s housing boom has been great for the local economy but many home buyers are unaware of the available HST housing rebate in Ontario and GST housing rebate in Ontario. The HST housing rebate in Ontario and GST housing rebate in Ontario is a rebate provided to home buyers to apply for a refund on GST/HST paid on their homes. The rebate is available to home owners who have purchased a home from the builder or custom-built their own homes. The HST housing rebate in Ontario and GST housing rebate in Ontario is available to those home owners who buy the property as their principal place of residence.
The GST/HST new housing rebate allows an individual to recover some of the goods and services tax (GST) or the federal part of the harmonized sales tax (HST) paid for a new or substantially renovated house that is for use as the individual’s, or their spouse’s primary place of residence, and all of the other conditions are met. In order to qualify for the Federal rebate, the total purchase price of the home must be less than $450,000 otherwise one cannot qualify to recover the federal portion of the HST paid.
While the HST housing rebate in Ontario and the GST housing rebate in Ontario relating to the purchase of a new property can get tricky, there is sufficient relief out there for both individuals seeking a new home and/or investors looking for a quick gain. However, without proper planning, one can also get stuck with having to pay HST twice and not get any form of relief to shelter the additional taxes levied.
New Housing Rebate Conditions
If your house is located in Ontario, you may also be eligible to claim a provincial new housing rebate to recover some of the provincial part of the HST that you paid to buy the house. To qualify for this rebate, you must be someone who bought a new or substantially renovated house (including a new condominium unit) from a builder, and you meet the following conditions:Maximum Rebate
The maximum Ontario new housing rebate amount that is available is $24,000, which is equal to 6% of $400,000. In essence, home buyers are paying 2% of the provincial tax in Ontario on the first $400,000 of the purchase price and 8% thereafter. The rebate amount has been capped to apply to the first $400,000. Unlike the Federal rebate however, one can still apply for the Provincial rebate on homes valued above $450,000.
Do I qualify for the rebate?
The HST housing rebate in Ontario and the GST housing rebate in Ontario is only available to individuals who meet all of the conditions for claiming the rebate. However, it is not available to individuals who co‑own the housing with corporations or other partnerships because the rebate is not made available to those entities.
Who is eligible for GST refund?
In order to be eligible, you must be a canadian resident for tax purposes and meet the following criteria: you are at least 19 years of age, you had a spouse/common law partner and you are or were a parent and lived with your child.