Home Renovation Tax Credit

[Mario A. Kyriacou, CHI]

Canada’s Economic Action Plan Offers Home Renovation Tax Credit

Renovating can be a great way to add value to your home. It can make your house a more comfortable environment for you and your family, and even reduce your energy bills. And now, with the introduction of the new Home Renovation Tax Credit (HRTC), this might be the best time to begin the renovations you’ve been planning.
As part of Canada’s Economic Action Plan, the Home Renovation Tax Credit will provide a one-year, temporary 15% income tax credit on eligible home renovation expenditures for work performed, or goods acquired after January 27, 2009 and before February 1, 2010. The credit may be claimed on eligible expenses exceeding $1,000, but no more than $10,000, for a total credit of up to $1,350.
Eligible renovation expenditures include: renovating your kitchen, bathroom or basement; installing new carpet or hardwood floors; building an addition, deck, fence or retaining wall; installing a new furnace, central air conditioner or water heater; painting the interior or exterior of your house; resurfacing a driveway and laying new sod.
Renovations which are not eligible for the credit include: purchase of furniture, appliances and tools, carpet cleaning, and maintenance contracts.
To obtain more information on the Home Renovation Tax Credit, call 1-800-O-Canada or visit the Canada Revenue Agency Web site.
Advance planning is the key to every successful renovation project. Browse through our wealth of renovation information aimed to help you plan, assess, and avoid costly renovation surprises.

[Rodney Misener]

****Note:

The HRTC rebate is NON-REFUNDABLE. In other words, if you do not owe taxes to the government, you will not get a rebate. They will not give you a rebate unless you owe them tax $$ at the end of the year!

I got this info directly from Revenue Canada.

[David P. Valley]

We are now regulated by the Massachusetts Home Inspector Board to distribute (to our home Buyers) the following information...
http://www.mass.gov/Eoca/docs/dpl/bo...ff_handout.pdf

The language of 6.08 allows distribution of the document at or before closing. This language allows for distribution at the inspection. A home inspector is in compliance with the regulation if he or she: provides the client a copy of the brochure provided by Masssave; provides the client with a copy of the brochure downloaded from the Board’s website; provides the client with a copy of the word document posted on the Board’s website; or embeds the language from the word document into his or her Report.

[Jerry Bettencourt]

Also keep in mind that it is a " TAX CREDIT" not a "TAX REFUND". Which means that people are assuming that they get $1350 back on their taxes if they do $10,000 in renovations. That is incorrect, they get a $1350 tax credit against their income and will be refunded on what the income tax value would be on that. Inother words if you spend $10,000 in renos and qualify for the $1350 in tax credit and you are in a 30% tax bracket then you get back $405.00 not the full $1350.