Cost of Buying | Putting it together
What You Actually Pay: Worked Examples
Every other page here explains one item. This one adds them up, because the interaction between the thresholds is where the surprises live.
The short answer
The thresholds for the GST rebate, the property transfer tax exemption, and the mortgage insurance cap all sit at different prices. That means the total cash needed does not rise smoothly with the purchase price. It steps, and the steps are large.
What you pay on a $1,150,000 newly built home
| List price | $1,150,000 |
|---|---|
| GST at 5% Normally added on top. A rebate may reduce it on qualifying purchases. | $57,500 |
| Property transfer tax Full tax before exemptions would be $21,000. | $21,000 |
| Before legal fees and adjustments | $1,228,500 |
Legal fees, title insurance, and closing adjustments are extra. Rebate eligibility depends on your circumstances, so confirm it with the Canada Revenue Agency or your lawyer before relying on it.
Why the total does not rise smoothly
Three separate thresholds operate at three different price points. The first-time buyers' GST rebate is full to one price and gone at a higher one. The newly built home property transfer tax exemption has its own, lower, thresholds. Mortgage insurance stops being available at a third.
None of them line up. So as the price rises, the total cash required jumps at several points by amounts far larger than the price change that triggered them.
How to use this
Find the band you are shopping in and look at what sits just above and just below it. If a threshold is close, that is a genuine reason to structure a search or a negotiation around it.
The blocks below work the purchase costs at four price points. The monthly cost is separate and lives on its own page.
What these examples assume
They apply the newly built home property transfer tax exemption where the price qualifies, because every home in this market is newly built. They show GST at the full rate before any rebate, since rebate eligibility is personal.
Legal fees, title insurance, and adjustments are not included, because they vary by lawyer and by transaction. Ask yours for an estimate.
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Common questions
How much cash do I need to buy a home here?
The down payment plus property transfer tax, legal fees, adjustments, and possibly GST. Which of those apply depends on the price and on whether you qualify for the exemptions, and the thresholds do not line up with each other.
Why do the thresholds matter so much?
Because they are cliffs rather than slopes. The GST rebate, the property transfer tax exemption, and the mortgage insurance cap each change at a different price, so total cash needed steps up at several points by far more than the price change that caused it.
Do these examples include my legal fees?
No. Legal fees, title insurance, and adjustments vary by lawyer and by transaction, so they are excluded rather than guessed at. Ask your lawyer for an estimate early, since it costs nothing.
Where these figures come from
- Government of BC, property transfer tax rates
1% to $200,000, 2% to $2M, 3% above $2M, plus a further 2% on residential value above $3M.
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- Government of BC, newly built home PTT exemption
Full exemption at $1,100,000 or less, partial to $1,150,000. Effective 1 April 2024.
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- Canada Revenue Agency, first-time home buyers' GST/HST rebate
Up to 100% of GST recovered to a maximum of $50,000 at or below $1M, reducing on a straight line to nothing at $1.5M. Royal Assent 12 March 2026.
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- CMHC, mortgage loan insurance for consumers
Insurance is unavailable at a purchase price of $1.5M or more, where 20% down is required.
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- VanPlex active listings, MLS® data
Active townhouses, half duplexes, and row houses built in the last two years across Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley.
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Work the numbers on a real home
Every figure here comes from government sources and from listings you can open. Search the market and check the costs against a specific price rather than a hypothetical one.