First time home buyer program piques interest in Kamloops

Jan 17, 2017 | 4:48 PM

KAMLOOPS — B.C.’s first time home buyer loan program launched Monday, and it’s piqued the interest of people looking to buy their first home in Kamloops. 

Jeremy McCrea is a sub-mortgage broker with Invis. He says he received a lot of phone calls from people the day the program was first announced, and expects many to take advantage of it. 

The loan matches a first-time home buyer’s down payment up to five per cent on a maximum purchase of $750,000. 

The money is interest and payment free for a period of five year, but must be paid off within 20 year, once the interest free period ends. 

McCrea says the program will likely be more useful for people in Kamloops than in the Lower Mainland. 

“A lot of people in Kamloops will be able to take advantage of the program as well because most of the houses in Kamloops are under $750,000, whereas Vancouver for example, I don’t think many of the people are going to be able to take advantage of it in certain areas because the houses are worth a lot more than $750,000.”

McCrea says the program will benefit those who have already been saving for a home the most, as they can get into the housing market with a 2.5 per cent down payment. 

However, by taking advantage of the loan, people will actually be qualifying for a reduced mortgage. 

“They’re using a 20 year amortization on that amount that you’re borrowing, whereas if you had your own five per cent down that amount would be over 25 years … You’ll qualify for less money by taking advantage of the program.”