Freeland announces housing affordability measures for first-time buyers, current owners

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced a number of housing affordability measures Thursday that she said will help buyers get their first homes and help current homeowners afford the homes they have.

«I really hope and believe the specific measures we announced today are going to provide a lot of comfort and a lot of hope to young Canadians,» she said in Toronto.

Freeland announced that effective April 16, the amount first-time home buyers can withdraw from their RRSPs to make a down payment on their first home will rise from a maximum of $35,000 to $60,000.

«This, plus the Tax-Free First Home Savings Account, can be combined, which will give younger Canadians more tools to save what is actually needed,» she said.

The Tax-Free First Home Savings Account program allows Canadians to save up to $8,000 per year toward a home, with a maximum lifetime contribution limit of $40,000.

Contributions to the accounts provide people with tax rebates. Growth in the accounts is not taxed and money can be taken out tax-free for a down payment.

Extending RRSP repayment period

Freeland also said she is more than doubling the time allowed for Canadians to start repaying their RRSP contributions once they have made a withdrawal to pay for the deposit on a home.

She said first-time home buyers who withdraw money from their RRSPs between Jan. 1 2022 and Dec. 31, 2025 will now have five years to begin repayments, instead of two.

Freeland also announced changes to the amortization schedule for mortgage repayments.

She said that beginning Aug. 1, first time home buyers with insured mortgages who purchase a new home will get 30 years to pay that mortgage back so «more younger Canadians can afford to pay that monthly