By The Canadian Press

Posted Mar 1, 2024 09:47:40 AM.  Last Updated Mar 1, 2024 02:00:27 PM.

Canada’s housing agency says it is ending the first-time homebuyer incentive program.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the deadline for new or updated submissions to the program is midnight eastern time on March 21.

The plan was meant to help reduce monthly mortgage payments for first-time buyers by having the government take on partial ownership of a property.

The government offered a loan up to 10 per cent of the purchase price that would go toward a larger down payment and thereby reduce monthly payments.

Homeowners have to repay the incentive after 25 years or when the property is sold, with the amount owing adjusted to reflect how the value of the property has changed.

The program was hampered in part by eligibility issues including limits to household income and the size of a mortgage the buyer could take on.

James Laird with ratehub.ca is glad to see it gone, saying it was seriously flawed.

“This program actually caused you to qualify for less than if you did not put yourself in the program,” he said.

He says new homebuyers ended up with a complicated co-ownership with the government that could prove costly, and, if you never sell, Laird says the government would send buyers a big bill after 25 years, tied to the value of their house.

He says there are other ways new buyers can get help, includ8ing the RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan, the new First Home Savings Account, and the First Time Home Buyers Tax Credit.