Your First Home in Ontario: Start Here
Buying your first home? Here’s everything you need: what you can afford, what it costs to close, and where to search.
Step 1: Know Your Budget
- Affordability Calculator — How much can you borrow? What monthly payment fits your budget?
- Closing Costs Calculator — Land transfer tax (including the First-Time Home Buyer rebate), legal fees, and total cash needed
- First-Time Buyer Incentive Checker — Add up every rebate and program for your price: FHSA, Home Buyers’ Plan, LTT and Toronto MLTT rebates, and GST/HST relief
Step 2: Search Starter Homes — Live MLS Listings
Tap a search below. Each button opens the live MLS search with the price filter already set to a realistic first-home budget. Browse freely — no signup needed.
Kitchener–Waterloo — strong tech jobs, relatively affordable
Kitchener–Waterloo under $400K
Kitchener–Waterloo under $500K
Kitchener–Waterloo under $600K
London — great value, growing city
London under $400K
London under $500K
London under $600K
Hamilton — close to Toronto, more affordable
Other great first-home cities — Brantford, Guelph, Barrie: use the search bar at the top of the site and type the city, or start from the full property search.
First-Time Buyer Programs
- Land Transfer Tax Rebate: Up to $4,000 back on Ontario LTT for first-time buyers
- FHSA: First Home Savings Account — save tax-free for your down payment
- Home Buyers’ Plan: Borrow from your RRSP for your down payment
- First-Time Buyer Incentive Checker — See your total: rebates, FHSA tax savings, HBP room, and GST/HST relief on a new build, all in one place
Work With Sim
Sim Sahota guides first-time buyers through every step. Call or text (647) 632-0871 or email sim@simsahota.com.
The numbers that matter for first-time buyers
Real program figures, verified against the program pages — not guesses. Your exact total depends on your price, your savings, your tax rate, and whether you buy in Toronto or a new build.
TOTAL HELP — $650,000 FIRST HOME
$71,500
FHSA + Home Buyers’ Plan + tax saved + tax credit + Ontario LTT rebate
TORONTO NEW-BUILD COUPLE — $900,000
$260,975
Same programs, plus Toronto MLTT rebate and GST/HST relief on a new build
ONTARIO LTT REBATE (MAX)
$4,000
Back on Ontario land transfer tax for first-time buyers
HOME BUYERS’ PLAN (PER PERSON)
$60,000
$120,000 per couple — borrow from your RRSP, repay over 15 years
Figures from the First-Time Buyer Incentive Checker, checked against RBC (Aug 14, 2026), Canada.ca and ontario.ca, November 5, 2026.
What $71,500 looks like on a $650,000 first home
An illustrative example using the incentive checker’s default figures — not a real purchase. Change any number in the checker to see your own total.
| FHSA savings you can put toward the purchase | $20,000 |
| Tax saved on those FHSA contributions (30% rate) | $6,000 |
| Home Buyers’ Plan — from your RRSP | $40,000 |
| Home Buyers’ Tax Credit | $1,500 |
| Ontario land transfer tax rebate | $4,000 |
| Down-payment funds (FHSA + Home Buyers’ Plan) | $60,000 |
| Money back (tax saved + tax credit + LTT rebate) | $11,500 |
| Total help | $71,500 |
Run your own numbers in the incentive checker →
How buying your first home goes
- Find out what you can afford. The affordability calculator turns your income and debts into a maximum price and a monthly payment.
- Add up every rebate and program. The incentive checker totals your FHSA, Home Buyers’ Plan, tax credit, LTT rebate and any GST/HST relief.
- Search starter homes at a realistic price. The searches above are already capped at first-home budgets in Kitchener–Waterloo, London and Hamilton.
- Call Sim before you write an offer. He checks the price against recent sales, the condition, and the closing costs — before you commit.
Five things first-time buyers get wrong
- The monthly payment is not the whole cost. Land transfer tax, legal fees, insurance and maintenance sit on top of the mortgage. Budget for closing costs, not just the down payment.
- A pre-approval is not a promise. A lender can change the terms if your situation changes, and a rate hold expires. Keep your credit and your job steady between pre-approval and closing.
- The listed price is not the price you pay. On a $650,000 home with 20% down, the down payment is $130,000 — and on top of that comes land transfer tax (about $9,475 before your $4,000 first-time buyer rebate), legal fees and the rest. Run the closing costs calculator before you fall in love with a listing.
- Every rebate has conditions. The FHSA, the Home Buyers’ Plan, the LTT rebate and the GST/HST relief each have their own rules and limits. The incentive checker applies them for your price.
- The cheapest house is not always the cheapest move. A low price can hide a roof, a foundation, or a heating system that costs more than the discount. Budget for the house you are actually buying.
First-time buyer questions
How much down payment do I need for my first home?
The minimum is 5% on the first $500,000, then 5% plus 10% of the amount between $500,000 and $1.5 million, and 20% at $1.5 million or more. With less than 20% down you pay mortgage default insurance (CMHC or equivalent), which is added to your mortgage.
What is the FHSA, and how much can I put in?
The First Home Savings Account lets you save up to $8,000 a year, $40,000 over your lifetime ($80,000 as a couple), tax-free. You must be 18 or older and a first-time buyer not living in a home you own.
Can I use my RRSP and the FHSA together?
Yes. The Home Buyers’ Plan lets you withdraw up to $60,000 per person ($120,000 per couple) from your RRSP, repayable over 15 years, on top of what you save in an FHSA.
Do I get a land transfer tax rebate in Toronto too?
Yes — two separate rebates. The Ontario rebate covers up to $4,000 of provincial land transfer tax, and the City of Toronto rebate covers up to $4,475 of the municipal tax. Both apply to a qualifying Toronto purchase.
Does the GST/HST rebate apply to any new home?
The first-time buyer GST/HST rebate covers 100% of the GST on a new home up to $1 million (up to $50,000), phasing out to zero at $1.5 million, for agreements on or after March 20, 2025. Ontario also offers the Enhanced New Housing Rebate and the Ontario New Home Affordability Payment, worth up to $130,000 combined on homes up to $1 million. The incentive checker applies these for your price.
Who you’re working with
Sim Sahota, Real Estate Professional with Coldwell Banker — and a CPA, CA. He works with first-time buyers across Ontario — Kitchener–Waterloo, London, Hamilton, the GTA; and walks them through the budget, the programs and the offer, step by step.
Call or text: (647) 632-0871 | Email: sim@simsahota.com
