While there is some help for the housing market from things announced in the federal budget, there are some unanswered questions about the new initiatives. 

Gord Archibald, CEO of the Regina Realtors Association said there were a couple of things in the budget that will give a little bit of a hand to first time buyers.

“The first was a new program, and all the details haven’t been flushed out on this yet... is where a first time buyer can purchase a home and CMHC will actually acquire either five per cent for a resale home or ten per cent for a new construction in the sale or purchase of a property,” said Archibald. “The idea there is to bring down the amount of mortgage that a buyer would have, and therefore their payments.”

There are a lot of details yet to come on the program but Archibald said it’s likely an attempt to put more people into a position of home ownership. That will come into effect Sept. 1, 2019.

“The second one is something we’ve been asking for a number of years, and that’s related to the home buyers plan,” he said. “Under that particular plan, first-time buyers can borrow from their own RRSP for a down payment without incurring the withdrawal penalty.”

Those RRSPs will have to be paid back for individuals within a 15-year period, but the borrowing limit increased from $25,000 to $35,000, which is recovering some of its lost purchasing power over the previous few years.

Both initiatives would be considered positives when it comes to the housing market and it’s hard to say at this point what the full impact will be.

“I think it’ll certainly help with the demand, but I don’t think either one will be a panacea as far as helping our real estate markets out here in Saskatchewan,” Archibald said.

In lower price markets like in Saskatchewan, it may have some attraction, he said.

In this budget, he said he would have liked to have seen a relaxation or a removal when it comes to what is referred to as the mortgage stress rules.

“It essentially requires a homebuyer to qualify for a mortgage at two percentage points higher than their actual mortgage rate,” Archibald said. “That has kept a lot of first time buyers on the sidelines over the years and a lot of lost demand in the marketplace.”