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BUYING A HOME

How to Find Your Perfect Home

Looking for a home can be an exciting and exhilarating experience. But before you start your search, you first need to figure out where you want to live and what your housing needs will be both now and in the future.

To help you find the home that’s right for you, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) suggests you ask yourself the following questions:

• How large a home do you need? Do you need several bedrooms, more than one bathroom, a home office or a two-car garage?
• Are you planning on making any lifestyle changes in the near future, for example, are you planning on having children? Do you have teenagers who will be moving away soon? Or are you close to retirement, and looking to downsize to a smaller home? By clearly setting out your priorities in advance, you can help save yourself a great deal of time and trouble later.
• Are there any special features you’d like your home to have, such as air conditioning, a swimming pool or a spare room for a hobby?
• What kind of neighborhood do you want to live in? Remember to take into account such features as how easy it will be to commute to work, whether your children will have a school close by, and how close you will be to family, friends and safe recreational areas and facilities.
• Would you prefer to live in a new home or a resale? New homes offer such advantages as more personalized choices, up-to-date appliances and finishing's, and often lower maintenance costs. But resale homes can provide easier access to more established services and mature landscaping, and may save you from having to pay GST/HST on your purchase.
• What type of home would you feel most comfortable living in? The choices available on the market today range from single-family detached houses, semi-detached and duplexes to townhouses, modular homes and condominiums.

When you’re ready to start looking for a home, some good sources include newspapers, real estate magazines, the Internet, real estate agents and word of mouth. If you’ve decided which neighborhoods you’re interested in, you can also spend a few days driving around them to look for new development sites or “For Sale” signs.

For more information on what features to look for and other factors associated with buying a home, visit www.cmhc.ca, search “Home buying Step-by-Step” or call CMHC at 1-800-668-2642. For more than 60 years, CMHC has been Canada’s national housing agency and a source of objective, reliable housing expertise.

The audits are a small part of Ontario's proposed new Green Energy Act, which the government says is "a bold series of co-ordinated actions to enhance economic activity and reduce our impact on the environment."

For story ideas or to access CMHC experts or expertise, contact CMHC Media Relations — National Office at: 613-748-2799 or by e-mail: media@cmhc-schl.gc.ca.

RENOVATING YOUR BASEMENT

How to Prevent Most Common Problems Before They Occur

Green homes are becoming increasingly more popular. Finding ways to advertise a home as being energy-efficient can spark a level of interest in prospective buyers. And as the seasons start to change and spring pollen floats into the air, having a solution to keep the pollen out of a home and save on a home's electricity bill is a plus.

Renovating your basement can be a relatively easy and inexpensive way to add extra living space and boost the value of your home. But before you finalize your budget or start picking out carpet samples, there are a few things you should do first to protect your home, keep your family healthy and safe — and ensure your renovation is a success.

To help you prepare for a successful basement renovation, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) offers the following tips on what to look for and how to prevent the most common problems before they occur:

• Inspect your basement for signs of moisture or mold, cracks in the walls or floor, or areas where you have to stoop to avoid bumping your head. If your basement isn’t high, dry, and structurally sound, be sure to include the cost of fixing those problems in your renovation budget.
• If you intend to alter the structure of your house, increase the size of any windows or exterior doors, or add a self-contained apartment such as a “granny flat,” you must obtain a building permit from your municipality before beginning construction.
• To prevent heat loss, most exterior basement walls must be insulated for most of their height. Make sure your plan also includes measures to control air leakage and moisture protection to help keep your basement warm and dry.
• Make sure your basement has a good quality heating system. Finished basements can also benefit from continuous or intermittent ventilation. Operation of the furnace fan, heat recovery ventilators or central exhaust systems can provide such ventilation.
• Finally, always make safety your number one priority. Install fire and smoke detectors on every floor of your home. Have electrical fixtures and wiring installed by a certified electrician. Make sure the basement has a safe path of exit to the outside in case of emergency. Protect your family by using low-pollutant emitting coverings and finishes. And when in doubt, hire a qualified professional to tackle any projects or deal with any issues you aren’t comfortable handling yourself.

For more information or a free copy of the “About Your House” fact sheets Renovating Your Basement — Structural Issues and Soil Conditions, Renovating Your Basement — Moisture Problems or Renovating Your Basement for Livability, call CMHC at 1-800-668-2642 or visit www.cmhc.ca. For more than 60 years, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has been Canada’s national housing agency and a source of objective, reliable housing expertise.

GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS WORTH THE EFFORT BUT CHECK THE DETAILS

By PJ Wade

Green homes are becoming increasingly more popular. Finding ways to advertise a home as being energy-efficient can spark a level of interest in prospective buyers. And as the seasons start to change and spring pollen floats into the air, having a solution to keep the pollen out of a home and save on a home's electricity bill is a plus.

After hearing about the government's billion dollar corporate bailouts, Canadian property owners may be tempted to ignore tax credit and other government-backed financial programs because, in comparison, they seem to involve trivial amounts—C$750 here, C$1350 there.

What can be significant are the long-term energy savings and other benefits gained by participating in the government's "stimulus" programs for non-corporate citizens.

The 2009 Federal Budget introduced the new temporary Home Renovation Tax Credit (HRTC), a non-refundable tax credit of up to C$1,350. Also added were an increase to the Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) withdrawal limit under the Home Buyers' Plan and the new C$750 First Time Home Buyers' Tax Credit. These measures are designed to "help stimulate the housing sector through increased demand for labour, building materials and other goods" and they may help you, too. For more on these programs, visit www.actionplan.gc.ca.

The Budget also mentioned the ecoENERGY Retrofit—Homes grant. The government reports that, since the beginning of April 2009, an average of more than 21,000 homeowners a month have had pre-retrofit energy evaluations completed—an increase of more than 75 percent compared to last April. Only homes that have undergone a Natural Resources Canada will be eligible for grants.

The NRC-administered ecoENERGY Retrofit—Homes grant applies to a variety of measures that can reduce energy consumption and provide for a cleaner environment. Home and property owners could be eligible for federal grants of up to C$5,000 to offset the cost of making energy efficiency improvements to their home or property. Most provinces and territories have complementary programs that offer additional financial assistance based on the results of the ecoENERGY Retrofit evaluation. For information on qualifying, visit the ecoACTION Web site.

Take time to clarify rules and limitations. You'll either qualify or you won't, but check with appropriate government offices to be sure, either way, before you dive in.

Borrowing the money necessary to participate in a renovation program may not always be a good idea. Make sure the benefit is very clear to you before you take on debt.

For instance, the much-touted Home Renovation Tax Credit (HRTC) is a non-refundable tax credit of up to C$1,350. This does not mean you save up that amount in receipts and receive a cheque from the government for C$1350.

• When an expense is regarded as a tax credit, the federal tax is reduced by the amount of the expense multiplied by the federal tax rate for the lowest bracket. All tax brackets usually benefit equally from tax credits. How would this benefit translate for you?

• Canada Revenue Agency rules state the one-time credit will be based on "eligible expenditures for work performed or goods acquired after January 27, 2009, and before February 1, 2010. Expenditures incurred pursuant to an agreement that was entered into before January 28, 2009, will not be eligible for the credit." The HRTC applies to eligible expenditures of more than C$1,000, but not more than C$10,000, resulting in a maximum credit of C$1,350 ($9,000 x 15%). Don't let a contractor treat the tax credit like their discount to you. Negotiate price the same way you would with any contractual arrangement.

If you take property ownership seriously, you'll discover there are many government—federal, provincial, municipal—programs which may take the sting out of rising costs and flagging economies. You may have to ponder the details a bit, but the experience is useful in learning how to gain whatever advantage governments offer real estate owners.