If you’re buying your first home in Ontario, particularly around Belleville, Quinte West, or Prince Edward County, 2025 just got a whole lot more exciting. The federal government rolled out a new rebate program that could put thousands of dollars back in your pocket when you buy a brand new home.

Let me break it down for you.

What’s This New GST Rebate All About?

Back in May 2025, Ottawa launched the First-Time Home Buyer GST Rebate. The goal? Help new buyers actually afford newly built homes while getting more housing built across Canada.

Here’s the deal: if you’ve never owned a home and you’re buying a new build worth $1 million or less, you can now get back 100% of that federal 5% GST.

How Much Money Are We Talking?

The rebate amount depends on your home’s purchase price. Here’s what you could save:

$500,000 home: $22,124 back
$600,000 home: $26,549 back
$700,000 home: $30,973 back
$800,000 home: $35,398 back
$900,000 home: $39,823 back
$1,000,000 home: $44,248 back

That’s real money staying in your bank account instead of going to taxes. And here’s the kicker: this rebate stacks on top of the existing provincial rebate that builders usually get.

These Aren’t Pie-in-the-Sky Homes

We’re talking about actual homes you can move into right now in Belleville, Quinte West, and Prince Edward County. These properties already have their HST baked into the price, but as a first-time buyer, you get to pocket these rebates.

Do You Qualify?

The requirements are pretty straightforward. You need to be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident who’s at least 18 years old. Your purchase agreement needs to be signed after May 27, 2025, and the home has to be finished before January 1, 2036.

Eligibility details are expected to align with other federal first-time buyer programs, which typically define a first-time buyer as someone who hasn’t owned or lived in a home owned by them or their spouse in the last 4 years — but we’re still awaiting official confirmation

Getting Your Money Back

Most of the time, you’ll pay the full purchase price upfront, then file for the rebate directly with the CRA after you close. But some builders we work with are getting creative. They might apply the rebate as a credit at closing or use it to help with your down payment or closing costs.

We’ll walk you through exactly what’s available for each property you’re considering.

Ready to See What You Qualify For?

With all of our decades of experience New home sales in the Quinte Region is what we do. We know the ins and outs of builder pricing, HST rules, and how to make this new federal rebate work in your favour so you can save the most money possible.

Give us a call, shoot us an email, or book a private tour of homes that qualify for the rebate.

We serve first-time buyers across Belleville, Quinte West, Trenton, Prince Edward County, Stirling, Frankford and the surrounding communities.