Written by Cameron Enns
Buying a home is often the biggest purchase an individual or couple makes in their lifetime. Unfortunately for many young Canadians, even those who live in Saskatchewan, owning a home no longer feels like a given, like it might have in the past. Wages haven’t increased at the same rate as home prices have, so it’s taking much longer to be able to save for a down payment. A new national program called the First Home Savings Account (“FHSA") is an attractive way to save for that down payment and may help get you there faster.
Amity Trust is able to offer the FHSA through Fidelity Investments. If you don’t currently own a home and homeownership is something you hope to achieve in the next 15 years, the FHSA may be the best investment account for you. Interested? Check out these facts and figures:
- A FHSA combines the benefits of a RRSP and TFSA, which means contributions (except from an RRSP) are tax-deductible, and they grow tax-free!
- You can contribute up to $8,000 per year, to a total lifetime amount of $40,000.
- If you’ve already contributed to an RRSP, you can transfer that tax-free, to your FHSA (subject to FHSA contribution limits). Understandably, there’s no further tax deduction for a contribution from your RRSP to your FHSA.
- Before the end of 15 years, funds in the FHSA can be withdrawn tax-free, and can be used to buy a home. If you decide not to buy a home, the funds can be rolled to an RRSP! It’s a win-win!
To find out if this account would be suitable for you, we’d love to meet with you! Amity Trust strives to help people achieve financial peace in all aspects of life. We understand that buying your first home is no small task, but if you meet with one of our advisors, we’ll work to put a plan in place to get you one step closer, and that step may just be a FHSA.