How much GST will you pay on a new home?

Resale homes don't attract GST, but new ones do. Buy a presale condo, a newly built townhome, or a substantially renovated house, and the federal government adds 5% GST on top of the purchase price. On a $900,000 presale that's $45,000, and like Property Transfer Tax it's cash due at completion. Always check whether an advertised presale price is quoted before or after GST; it changes your budget by tens of thousands of dollars.

Two rebate programs can shrink that bill:

The GST New Housing Rebate. If the home will be your (or an immediate family member's) primary residence, you can recover 36% of the GST on homes priced up to $350,000, a maximum of $6,300. Between $350,000 and $450,000 the rebate phases out on a straight line, reaching zero at $450,000. In Metro Vancouver's price range this classic rebate often doesn't help much, which is exactly why the newer program below matters so much more here.

The federal first-time home buyer GST rebate on new homes. Announced in 2025, this program eliminates the GST entirely for eligible first-time buyers purchasing a new home priced up to $1,000,000, worth up to $50,000. Between $1,000,000 and $1,500,000 the relief phases out linearly, hitting zero at $1.5M. To qualify you must be a first-time buyer (broadly: you haven't owned, or lived in a home your spouse owned, in the current and previous four calendar years) and the home must become your primary residence. Timing rules matter too, the program is aimed at agreements signed on or after May 27, 2025, with construction deadlines attached.

One important nuance this calculator handles for you: the two rebates don't stack. If you qualify for both, you claim the better one, which for first-time buyers under $1.5M is essentially always the FTHB rebate. And note both programs require the primary-residence intention; investors renting the home out use a different mechanism (the New Residential Rental Property rebate) with its own rules.

In practice, the builder often credits the rebate at completion so you never front the cash, but that's contract-specific, and your lawyer or notary will confirm how yours is handled.

Disclaimer: these figures are estimates only, and rebate eligibility involves conditions this tool doesn't model, occupancy timing, agreement dates, construction milestones, citizenship and residency requirements, and more. Confirm your actual GST and rebate position with your lawyer, notary, or accountant before you commit.