Best FHSAs in Canada: Where to get the new first home savings account

Frequently asked questions about FHSAs

Where you can open an FHSA right now

Few institutions currently offer an FHSA; however, the list is expected to grow in the coming months. The MoneySense editorial team will update this page as more accounts become available, so you can easily find the best FHSA for your needs. 

Questrade

On April 1, 2023, Questrade became the first company to offer an FHSA. Customers can invest in the FHSA through a Questrade self-directed account or through Questwealth Portfolios, its robo-advisor platform. You can open a Questrade or Questwealth FHSA for free, and there’s no minimum deposit required; however, in order to open the account, customers must have at least $250 invested with Questrade or $1,000 invested with Questwealth Portfolios.

Good to note: MoneySense named Questwealth Portfolios the best robo-advisor for frugal investors in 2023.

RBC

RBC began offering an FHSA through RBC Direct Investing (its online brokerage) and RBC InvestEase (its robo-advisor platform) on April 20, 2023. You can also open the account through RBC online banking, on the bank’s mobile app, or by speaking with a financial advisor at a branch. There’s no minimum balance required to open an FHSA.

With RBC InvestEase—MoneySense’s 2023 pick for the best robo-advisor for investors who like things simple—funds are automatically invested once the account balance reaches $100. Customers are charged an annual management fee of 0.5% on the investment balance, plus applicable sales tax and a management expense ratio on exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

With RBC Direct Investing, there are no FHSA maintenance fees. Customers can currently invest in stocks, options, bonds, ETFs and GICs, and the bank is aiming to add mutual funds to the list in the near future. Account holders are charged $9.95 in commission fees for trading stocks and ETFs.

National Bank of Canada

National Bank of Canada launched its FHSA on April 17, 2023. There’s no minimum deposit or minimum balance required to be open an FHSA with the bank. However, customers are required to make an appointment with a National Bank advisor—a step that is not currently required at Questrade and RBC.

Fidelity

Fidelity Investments began offering an FHSA on April 19, 2023. Investors can hold mutual funds and ETFs in the account, but availability of the account is dependant on third-parties.

“Fidelity currently provides eligible investors access to the FHSA through financial advisors who offer client-name accounts and eligible online trading platforms,” wrote Chris Pepper, vice president of corporate affairs at Fidelity, in an email. “We expect more intermediary financial institutions (dealers, etc.) to offer these products in the coming weeks and months.”

Why is FHSA availability limited?

There are likely several reasons for the delayed roll-out of FHSAs at many Canadian financial institutions, including four of the Big Six banks.

Aaron Hector, a Certified Financial Planner and private wealth advisor at Calgary-based CWB Wealth, says one possibility is that many firms are waiting on their application to be approved by the Registered Plans Directorate at the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). He notes that certain official documents are not yet available, such as the form to make a designated withdrawal or designated transfer, and the form to transfer from an FHSA into a registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) or registered retirement income fund (RRIF).

Another possible explanation, he says, is that providers “might not be ready to offer the FHSA as internally they have not yet had adequate time to get their internal processes ready and train their staff on the new account.”

How to choose an FHSA—from a limited number of options

To pick the right FHSA, you should ask yourself the same questions you would when opening any other account, says Hector. It’s important to consider the FHSA’s investment options and fees, as well as whether you’ll be ‘on your own’ or receive financial advice from the company offering the account.

“The only added quirk right now is that your number one choice simply may not be an option if they are not yet offering it,” Hector says. “Unless you have a home purchase coming up in the near term, you might just want to wait a little bit longer and open it up at your preferred location.”

As more FHSAs become available, consider these factors before opening the account: 

• The type of service offered: Do you prefer to speak with an investment advisor? Online platforms might not provide the level of service you need—ask what kind of support you can expect.
• Your investment knowledge: Consider your level of comfort with investing. Experienced DIY investors could consider an FHSA at a self-directed online brokerage, so they can manage their own investments. New to investing? You may prefer to invest through a low-cost robo-advisor or to have an investment advisor manage your assets.
• Trading and management fees: If you prefer to invest the money within your FHSA, take a close look at the fees for making trades or managing your portfolio. These costs can quickly add up. Your comfort with paying trading and management fees should also guide your decision on whether to invest in your FHSA through a brokerage, a discount brokerage or a robo-advisor. 
• Interest rates: Some providers may eventually offer competitive interest rates on funds held within your FHSA, as they do with tax-free savings accounts (TFSAs). As a savings account, an FHSA that pays interest may be a good fit for people who simply want to earn tax-free interest on their cash, without the risk of investing in securities. If that’s your strategy, go with the account offering the highest interest rate on your savings. 

A guide to FHSAs in Canada

What is an FHSA?

Short for first home savings account, the FHSA is a type of registered account designed to help Canadians save to buy their first home, namely the down payment, which can be up to 20% of the total cost of the property. You can contribute up to $8,000 per year into an FHSA, up to a lifetime limit of $40,000. 

The FHSA shares similarities with the RRSP and the TFSA, which are also available to Canadians. FHSA contributions are tax-deductible, like with an RRSP, and the money can be withdrawn tax-free, like with a TFSA—as long as the withdrawal is used for a down payment on a home. Funds put into an FHSA grow tax-free and are not subject to capital gains tax. 

What is an FHSA? Read the MoneySense Glossary definition.

FHSA start date

FHSAs became available on April 1, 2023, through an act of legislation passed in 2022. FHSAs can be issued by banks, credit unions, insurance companies and trust companies. Eventually, you should be able to find them wherever RRSPs and TFSAs are offered.

Read more about the announcement of the FHSA as part of the 2022 federal budget.

FHSA rules 

To open an FHSA, you must be a Canadian resident aged 18 or older. The FHSA can remain open for 15 years, or until the end of the year you turn 71, or until the end of the year following the year in which you make a qualifying home purchase—whichever comes first. 

You can contribute up to $8,000 per year toward your FHSA, up to a lifetime limit of $40,000. Unused contribution room, up to a maximum of $8,000, can be carried forward one year; this means that if you do not contribute anything in one year, you can contribute up to a maximum of $16,000 the following year. Unlike with a TFSA, however, FHSA contribution room only begins to accumulate once you’ve opened the account—it does not automatically begin when you turn 18 or apply retroactively to when you turned 18. 

Who can open an FHSA?

You can open an FHSA if you meet all of these qualifying criteria at the time of opening the account:

• You are 18 years of age or older
• You are a resident of Canada
• You are a first-time home buyer

To be considered a first-time home buyer when opening an FHSA, you must not have lived in a qualifying home that you owned or jointly owned at any time in the calendar year before the account is opened, or at any time in the preceding four calendar years. And you must not have lived in a qualifying home that your spouse or common-law partner owned or jointly owned, at any time in the calendar year before the account is opened or at any time in the preceding four calendar years.

What investments can you hold in an FHSA? 

In Canada, there are limitations on the types of investments you can hold in registered accounts. The federal government has stated that the qualified investments for an FHSA are the same as those for a TFSA. This means you can hold the following assets in an FHSA: 

• Mutual funds
• Publicly traded securities (such as stocks and exchange-traded funds)
• Government and corporate bonds
• Guaranteed investment certificates (GICs)

You cannot hold the following investments in your FHSA:

• Land
• Shares of private corporations
• General partnership units

Read more: “What can I hold in an FHSA?”

What happens to the money in an FHSA if you don’t buy a home? 

If you decide not to use money in an FHSA for a home purchase—say, you decide that renting is better for you, you live with someone who already owns their place, or you inherit real estate—you can transfer the funds to an RRSP or a RRIF without being penalized or affecting your RRSP contribution room. In essence, the FHSA creates additional RRSP contribution room, up to $40,000, for all Canadians who meet the definition of a first-time home buyer.

However, keep in mind that an FHSA withdrawal used for a home purchase is not taxed, whereas funds withdrawn from an RRSP or a RRIF are taxed. 

Using an FHSA with other accounts and home-buying programs

When buying your first home, you can use the FHSA with the Home Buyers’ Plan (HBP), which allows you to borrow up to $35,000 from your RRSP. And when buying a home jointly with another person, you can combine your FHSA and HBP withdrawals for a sum of at least $80,000 from your FHSAs and $70,000 through the HBP, for a total of $150,000. That’s equal to a 20% down payment on a home priced at $750,000. This is why the FHSA was created—to make buying a home more accessible for those wanting to get on the real estate ladder (more info below). 

These calculations do not account for potential tax-free investment growth in the FHSA, nor any money you may have saved in a TFSA, both of which would boost the total amounts available for a down payment. Note that HBP withdrawals are taxed if not repaid within 15 years.

To get a sense of how your investments might grow in an FHSA, use our compound interest calculator. 

FHSAs: How they compare to RRSPs and TFSAs

Here’s a chart that shows the key differences and similarities between these three accounts.

Are FHSA deposits insured? 

Yes. Effective April 1, 2023, the Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation (CDIC) will begin to offer separate coverage of $100,000 for eligible deposits held in an FHSA. Canadians’ deposits are now covered under nine different insured deposit categories at CDIC member institutions. Note, however, that while the CDIC covers GICs, it does not cover other types of investments.

Why was the FHSA created?

Many Canadians dream of home ownership. However, many factors have long made it a difficult goal to achieve, and that continues to be the case in 2023. These factors include high real estate prices, which require saving a substantial down payment and having a high income to qualify for a mortgage, as well as high rents, which make saving more difficult. (See how much income you need to afford a home in the Greater Toronto and Vancouver areas.)

As such, with the goal of helping more people buy their first home, the federal government announced in 2022 its plans to launch the FHSA in 2023. It also doubled the first-time home buyers’ tax credit from $5,000 to $10,000 and extended the First-Time Home Buyer Incentive to March 31, 2025, among other measures aimed at supporting home buyers. 

Read more about FHSAs: 

• How to take advantage of the first home savings account
• How retired parents can use the FHSA to help their adult children
• First home savings account: A Gen Z guide to achieving home ownership

About Justin Dallaire

Justin Dallaire is the senior editor at MoneySense.ca. He was previously the associate editor at Strategy magazine and has contributed to publications including The Walrus and TVO.org.

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