How Many BC Presales Qualify for the New GST Rebate?
272 of the 339 priced active BC presales start under $1,000,000, the cap for the full first-time buyer GST rebate. 41 phase out; 26 get nothing.
By Newbuild · · How we write this
Most of them, but not all, and where a project falls depends on the price of the specific unit, not the building. Of the 339 active BC presale developments in our catalogue that currently list a starting price, 272 start under $1,000,000 — the ceiling for the full First-Time Home Buyers' GST Rebate — and another 41 start between $1,000,000 and $1,500,000, where the rebate phases out to nothing. Twenty-six start at $1,500,000 or higher and get no rebate at all.
The rebate in three numbers
The rebate, created by Bill C-4 and given Royal Assent on March 12, 2026, works on a straight line:
- Under $1,000,000: the full GST is rebated, up to $50,000.
- $1,000,000 to $1,500,000: the rebate shrinks in a straight line as the price rises. A $1,250,000 home gets roughly half.
- $1,500,000 and up: no rebate.
That mechanic, plus who counts as a first-time buyer and how to apply, is covered in full in our GST rebate guide. This piece is about where BC presale prices actually sit against that line.
What's in the catalogue right now
These are starting prices — the cheapest unit currently listed in each building. A project that starts under $1,000,000 can still have larger units priced above the cap; the rebate is assessed per unit, not per building. Eighty-three active listings in the catalogue don't have a posted starting price yet and aren't counted below.
| City | Priced listings | Under $1M | $1M–$1.5M (phases out) | $1.5M+ (no rebate) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vancouver | 61 | 37 | 11 | 13 |
| Surrey | 56 | 51 | 3 | 2 |
| Coquitlam | 46 | 40 | 3 | 3 |
| Langley | 40 | 33 | 3 | 4 |
| Burnaby | 29 | 26 | 3 | 0 |
| Abbotsford | 22 | 20 | 2 | 0 |
| North Vancouver | 18 | 12 | 5 | 1 |
| Delta | 13 | 8 | 4 | 1 |
| Maple Ridge | 11 | 9 | 0 | 2 |
| Richmond | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 |
| Mission | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| New Westminster | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Port Coquitlam | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| Chilliwack | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Port Moody | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| West Vancouver | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| White Rock | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Pitt Meadows | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Vancouver is the only city where the $1,500,000-plus bracket outnumbers the phase-out band — 13 excluded listings against 11 phasing out, most of them condos in Oakridge and the West End. Everywhere else, the cheaper bands dominate. In Surrey, Coquitlam, Langley and Burnaby, four out of five priced listings start under the full-rebate line.
Where the phase-out band sits
The $1,000,000-to-$1,500,000 band is narrow but it holds 41 active listings, spread across almost every city we track. On the low end, Rindall in Port Coquitlam starts at $1,009,900 — a first-time buyer there loses most of the rebate but not all of it. Solo District – Aerius in Burnaby starts at $1,097,900. On the high end of the band, Brighouse 22 in Richmond starts at $1,499,900 — one hundred dollars under the cutoff, where the rebate is close to zero anyway.
Where it starts
Some of the lowest starting prices in the catalogue sit well clear of the cap. Scout in Abbotsford starts at $279,900. In Surrey, Harlowe starts at $299,900. These are studios and one-bedrooms, not representative of a whole building, but they show how far under $1,000,000 some entry units already sit — a first-time buyer at that price pays no GST at all.
What gets nothing
Twenty-six active listings start at $1,500,000 or above, and 13 of them are in Vancouver — Emera and Ashlyn in Oakridge, 1818 Alberni in the West End, among others. Langley, Coquitlam and Maple Ridge each have a handful too, mostly larger townhomes and single-family-style presale product rather than condos.
The date that trips people up
Price is only half the test. The purchase agreement has to be signed on or after March 20, 2025, and before 2031, and construction has to begin before 2031 and be substantially complete before 2036. A buyer who signed a presale contract before March 20, 2025 doesn't qualify for the rebate no matter what the unit costs today — even if the building hasn't broken ground yet. There's no way to fix that after the fact; the anti-avoidance rules in the legislation block cancelling an older contract and re-signing to get inside the window.
What changes next
Eighty-three active listings still have no posted starting price — mostly projects that are coming soon rather than selling. As those prices post, some will land under $1,000,000 and some won't, and the split by city will move. The other thing that moves this: developers pricing entry units just under $1,000,000 on purpose, since that's now a number buyers are watching. We'll update these counts as prices change.