The Ontario Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing spoke to Quinte News about the push to make home ownership more affordable.
Starting Wednesday April 1, 2026, the 13 per cent of Harmonized Sales Tax will be removed from the purchase of a newly-built home or residential rental unit, with an agreement signed over the next 12 months.
Minister Rob Flack:
“The one-year opportunity to help kick start the housing sector for both home buyers and home builders. It will be turned off in 12 months. We are confident it will work.”
Flack explains some of the fine print:
“If you have a purchase agreement in place, the home doesn’t have to be constructed and finished in 2026, 2027. You can move in a year later, two years later. It takes you two years to build a house, you just have an agreement in place and you’ve started to build the house.”
MORE DETAILS BELOW
Quick Facts
- Other eligibility requirements for the New Housing Rebate and New Residential Rental Property Rebate would remain the same as under the current rules, including that the purchaser must be acquiring the new home for use as their primary place of residence or as a residential rental property.
- Further details on the expanded HST rebates for all eligible buyers will be made available following the release of the 2026 Budget.
- Last October, Ontario announced a proposal to remove the full eight per cent provincial portion of the HST for first-time home buyers of new homes valued up to $1 million, mirroring the proposed federal GST/HST First-Time Home Buyers Rebate which the federal government adopted following months of advocacy from Ontario.
- Ontario’s proposed changes for first-time home buyers mean both the province and federal government’s rebates would be available if the agreement of purchase and sale for a new home is entered into with the builder on or after March 20, 2025 and on or before December 31, 2030. Ontario will continue working with the federal government on the implementation of the provincial rebate.
- Ontario is taking action to help speed up the construction of new homes by bringing consistency and transparency to development charges and municipal land use planning and expanding strong mayor powers to more municipalities.
