Buying a Home in BC: First-Time Buyer Tax Exemption, Costs and Steps

Buying a home in British Columbia means paying property transfer tax, unless you qualify for the first-time buyer exemption, and in most of Metro Vancouver and Victoria it usually means buying into a strata. This page covers what is specific to BC: the exemption and its price limits, the 3-business-day cooling-off period, strata documents and closing with a notary. The national programs (the FHSA, the Home Buyers’ Plan and the federal tax credit) are the same in every province and are covered in the first-time home buyer guide.

BC’s property transfer tax exemption for first-time buyers

A qualifying first-time buyer pays no property transfer tax on the first $500,000 of a home’s fair market value, worth up to $8,000. The full exemption applies to homes worth up to $835,000; it shrinks between that and $860,000, and there is none above. Tax is still owed on the value above the exempt portion.

To qualify:

• You are a Canadian citizen or permanent resident when the property is registered.
• You lived in B.C. for at least a year immediately before registration, or filed at least 2 income tax returns as a B.C. resident in the last 6 taxation years.
• You have never owned a registered interest in a property that was your principal residence, anywhere in the world.
• You have never received a first-time home buyers' exemption or refund.
• The property is used only as your principal residence.
• Fair market value up to $835,000 for the full exemption, partial up to $860,000.
• The property is 0.5 hectares or smaller with only residential improvements (otherwise the exemption is partial).
• To keep the exemption on an existing home, you must move in within 92 days of registration and live there as your principal residence until the first anniversary of registration; moving out sooner can mean keeping only part of it.

The BC property transfer tax calculator works out the tax with and without the exemption, and the BC government’s exemption page lists who qualifies, including the residency and property-size rules.

Newly built homes have a separate property transfer tax exemption that doesn’t require being a first-time buyer; the calculator page covers it too.

Other closing costs

Legal or notary fees, title insurance, property tax adjustments and, on a new home, GST make up the rest of the closing bill. The BC closing cost calculator totals them, and the GST/HST new housing rebate guide covers the federal rebate for first-time buyers of new homes.

How buying works in BC

• The offer: BC uses a standard Contract of Purchase and Sale, and conditions are called “subjects” (financing, inspection, strata documents). The deal becomes firm when the subjects are removed. The offer to purchase guide explains how conditions work.
• Cooling-off period: after an accepted offer on most residential property, the buyer can cancel within 3 business days by paying the seller 0.25% of the price. See the BC cooling-off period for the exceptions.
• Strata purchases: before removing subjects, review the Form B information certificate, the depreciation report, the contingency reserve fund, recent council minutes and the bylaws (rental and pet rules). The condo buying guide explains what to look for.
• Closing: in BC a notary public can handle a standard residential purchase; a lawyer is needed for more complex ones. See what a real estate lawyer does.

Taxes after you buy

Homes in designated areas, including Metro Vancouver and the Capital Regional District, need an annual declaration for the speculation and vacancy tax; a home you live in is normally exempt. Buyers who aren’t Canadian citizens or permanent residents face the federal foreign buyer ban.

Where to look in BC

• Prices: the British Columbia housing market report, with city reports for Vancouver, Victoria and Kelowna.
• City buying guides: buying a home in Vancouver, Victoria vs Vancouver and where to live in Victoria.
• Lower-cost options: the cheapest cities in BC.
• If you rent now: BC’s rules on rent increases and rent vs buy in Vancouver.

Down payment and mortgage

The minimum down payment and the mortgage stress test are federal rules and the same in every province: see the down payment calculator and BC mortgage rates. The Home Buyers’ Plan, the FHSA and the first-time home buyers’ tax credit can all go toward a BC purchase.

Related pages

• Closing costs
• First-time home buyer programs by province
• How the home buying process works
• Financial guide to living in BC