As of February 20, 2008, first-time buyers can purchase a home priced up to $425,000 without paying the Property Transfer Tax (PTT). The previous ceiling was $375,000. Buyers of homes priced up to $450,000 can claim a proportional exemption. This is the third consecutive budget that has increased the PTT first-time buyer exemption price threshold.

First-time buyers can now also pay down their mortgages by any amount in the first year of ownership without being disqualified from the exemption. Gone are the old PTT financing rules which required buyers to have at least a 70% mortgage to qualify for the exemption, and to have registered financing to qualify for the exemption.