by Nancy Gardiner
Northern News Services

NNSL (Sep 24/97) - The Yellowknife Real Estate Board wants to see a change in the way first-time homeowners are treated in a federal assistance scheme.

First-time buyers in the NWT can place a five per cent downpayment on a home in Northern Canada with a purchase price up to $175,000. But the Yellowknife Real Estate Board wants that ceiling lifted to $200,000 to better reflect housing prices in the North.

The downpayment rates are set by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation, but no variation is allowed for the North.

"We had lobbied and we would like to again. We've been unsuccessful in the past, but the board will look at it again," says Rod Stirling, president of the Yellowknife Real Estate Board.

The move would "open the market to a wider range of purchasers," he adds.

In Toronto, the ceiling is $250,000.

"The single biggest reason stopping people from purchasing is the large downpayment. With people in Yellowknife, most have the ability to make the mortgage payment. They're isolated and can go on a fancy trip or drive a new car, but it seems to be a problem we run into a lot," says Stirling.

The new homeowners can afford the mortgage payments, which can be the same or even less than rents, he says, but not the large downpayment.

For purchasers who aren't first-time buyers, the rate is 10 per cent of the downpayment if the home price exceeds $175,000.