The majority of Canada's government grants for homes are for energy-efficient improvements.
The government of Canada has spent recent years introducing grant programs for purchasing and renovating homes. Some of these grants are to stimulate the economy and encourage home ownership among younger members of the population, and others are meant to push homeowners to make their homes more energy efficient and less wasteful through renovations. Some of these grants come in the form of tax credits, which must be declared when filing income taxes, while others are immediately given as they may be needed to fund renovations. Does this Spark an idea?
Provincial Grants
There are quite a few government grants for homes that are introduced by provincial or municipal governments in Canada. Examples include the Ontario Home Energy Savings Program and Home Energy Assistance Toronto program, each of which provided grants to homeowners for renovating or insulating their home to be more energy efficient. If a homeowner completed each renovation on both lists, including installing solar panels, insulating his attic and installing low-flow toilets, he could get up to C$6,000. All of these grants vary by province.
Canadian Eco-energy Retrofit Rebate Program
The Canadian Eco-energy Retrofit Rebate Program is similar to the Ontario Home Energy Savings Program, offering grants to homeowners for completing energy efficient and environmentally responsible renovations. This program offered up to C$5,000, but when paired with provincial programs the grants could be has high as C$10,000.
To begin the process, homeowners would have to pay for a home energy audit to see where their home stands with regard to energy conservation and to see recommendations for improvements. The government of Ontario also had this requirement and would pay for half of the audit.
This program was canceled in March of 2010, one year early. The government of Canada maintained the program was under review and not canceled for good, but speculation remains that there was not enough funding to continue.
Home Renovation Tax Credit
The Home Renovation Tax Credit was introduced for the 2009 tax year in order to stimulate the economy by creating construction jobs during the 2009 recession. Homeowners were able to claim 15 percent of a maximum of CAN$10,000 in renovations to receive a tax credit of up to C$1,350.
First-Time Buyer Tax Credit
The First-Time Buyer Tax Credit is a tax credit for first-time home buyers that was a part of the Canadian government's economic action plan to help stimulate the economy. It offers first-time buyers credits of C$5,000 for home purchases made after January 2009.
Tags: energy efficient, Home Energy, stimulate economy, these grants, Buyer Credit, Canadian Eco-energy, Canadian Eco-energy Retrofit
