BC budget includes new real estate taxes and spending commitments

Housing was the dominant issue in today’s provincial budget.

The government released a 30-point housing strategy aimed at reducing housing demand, curbing tax fraud, building affordable housing, and increasing security for renters. 

Please see the complete Budget 2018 by clicking on the link below:

http://bcbudget.gov.bc.ca/2018/newsrelease/2018_News_Release.pdf

Affordable housing

• The province is investing $6 billion in affordable housing to create 114,000 homes over the next 10 years.
• The province will enhance local government capacity to build and retain affordable housing.
• The province will require developers to collect and report comprehensive information about the assignment of pre-sale condo purchases.
• The province intends to track beneficial ownership information.
• The province will collect additional information to increase transparency and strengthen enforcement in real estate.

Tax measures

Speculation tax

• The province will implement a new speculation tax on residential properties, targeting foreign and domestic homeowners who don’t pay income tax in BC. This includes those who leave homes vacant.
• The tax will apply to the Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley, Capital, and Nanaimo Regional districts and in the municipalities of Kelowna and West Kelowna.
• In 2018, the tax rate will be $5 per $1,000 of assessed value. In 2019, the tax rate will rise to $20 per $1,000 of assessed value.
• The province will administer the tax and will collect data to enforce it including, social insurance numbers, household information, and world-wide income information.

Foreign buyer tax

• Effective Feb. 21, 2018, the foreign buyer tax will increase to 20 per cent from 15 per cent and will be extended to the Fraser Valley, Capital, Nanaimo, and Central Okanagan Regional Districts.
• If the property is located in the Capital Regional District, Fraser Valley Regional District, Regional District of Central Okanagan, or Nanaimo Regional District, and the property transfer is registered on or after February 21, 2018, there are transitional rules available here.

Property Transfer Tax

Effective Feb. 21, 2018, the Property Transfer Tax on residential properties above $3 million will increase to five per cent from three per cent.

Provincial School Tax

Beginning in 2019, the provincial school tax will increase on most residential properties in excess of $3 million.

Database on pre-sale condo assignments

The province will require developers to collect and report comprehensive information about the assignment of pre-sale condo purchases. The information will be reported to a designated government office and shared with federal and provincial tax authorities to ensure taxes are paid.

Online accommodation PST and MRDT

Online accommodation platforms are enabled to collect and remit the Provincial Sales Tax and Municipal and Regional District Tax (Hotel Room Tax).

Property tax treatment for ALR land

As part of the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) review, the province is examining residential land in the ALR to ensure land is used for farming.

Clarity of property ownership

Compelling access to MLS®

The province plans to enable tax administrators to compel access to information relevant to property transfers, such as information held in a MLS® database. 

Beneficial land ownership registry

The province will require additional information about beneficial ownership on the PTT form.

Administered by the LTSA, the information will be publicly available and shared with federal and provincial tax and law enforcement authorities. Legislation will be introduced to require BC corporations to hold accurate and up to date information on beneficial owners in their own record offices available to law enforcement, tax and other authorities.

Task force on money laundering and tax evasion

The province will work with the federal government to formalize a multi-agency working group on tax evasion, money laundering and housing.

Residential Tenancy Branch

Increased funding to the Residential Tenancy Branch to reduce wait time, improve service and deal with disputes more quickly, as well as strengthening the Residential Tenancy Act and the penalties for those who repeatedly break the law.

Budget 2018 puts people first.......

http://bcbudget.gov.bc.ca/2018/newsrelease/2018_News_Release.pdf

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New taxes unlikely to stabilize housing market Victoria, BC – February 20, 2018.

The British Columbia Real Estate Association calls on government to introduce transitional rules for all transactions impacted by the new tax measures introduced in Budget 2018. The new tax measures come into effect on February 21, 2018. The Property Transfer Tax (PTT) increase to 5% for properties over $3 million, as well as the increase to 20% and expansion of the Foreign Buyer’s Tax to other parts of the province will have an immediate impact on transactions underway.

http://www.bcrea.bc.ca/docs/News-2018/2018-02-20BCBudget.pdf?sfvrsn=8 

Mortgage Rate Outlook Canadian mortgage rates rose substantially in 2017 and are forecast to rise further in 2018. After beginning the year at or near historical lows for both the qualifying rate as well as 5-year contract rates, an acceleration of economic growth prompted a shift at the Bank of Canada and a withdrawal of stimulus implemented to help the economy absorb the oil-shock of 2015.

http://www.bcrea.bc.ca/docs/economics-forecasts-and-presentations/mortgagerateforecast.pdf

The North Shore continues to be one of the most attractive regions in Canada for new immigrants, according to Statistics Canada’s recently released 2016 census figures.

Since 2001, West Vancouver’s population has grown by 259. However, the municipality’s immigrant population rose by 3,840, bringing West Van’s overall percentage of immigrants from 36 to 44 per cent.

http://www.nsnews.com/news/west-van-s-immigrant-population-up-1.23082818

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New Zealand’s new Prime Minister-elect, Jacinda Ardern, has wasted no time in addressing that country’s soaring property prices.

Ardern – who seems to be taking over from Justin Trudeau as the global media’s latest, youngest, hippest nation leader du jour – announced October 24 that non-resident buyers will not be permitted to purchase existing homes anywhere in New Zealand (while also announcing a crackdown on immigration).

http://www.rew.ca/news/should-we-follow-new-zealand-s-foreign-buyer-ban-1.23075761?utm_source=Consumer%3A+Vancouver+Market+News&utm_campaign=beef2b4ec5-REW_Consumer_News_Friday_October_10_27_2017&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8e94885b84-beef2b4ec5-93614499

Holding the overnight interest rate steady in its October 25 announcement, the Bank of Canada warned that future rate hikes would be likely, although at a more tentative pace than previously anticipated.

Following two interest rate hikes in July and September at consecutive policy meetings, the central bank said it had decided to hold off with another rate hike – for now. This corresponds with the BC Real Estate Association’s prediction in September that interest rates won’t rise again until 2018.

http://www.rew.ca/news/bank-of-canada-promises-caution-in-interest-rate-hikes-1.23074532?utm_source=Consumer%3A+Vancouver+Market+News&utm_campaign=beef2b4ec5-REW_Consumer_News_Friday_October_10_27_2017&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8e94885b84-beef2b4ec5-93614499

Last year, so many of you so generously donated items to the REALTORS’ CARE BLANKET DRIVE and  as a result, that success contributed to the more than 300,000 people in our communities who have been helped over the past 22 years.

This year, THE NEED HAS NEVER BEEN GREATER.

Between Tuesday, November 14 to Tuesday, November 21, is the 23^rd REALTORS’ CARE BLANKET DRIVE, and we are asking you to help the homeless and working poor stay warm and dry again this winter.

Of course, the BLANKET DRIVE does not just mean blankets…….

You can help with donations of:
  • gently used or new blankets or sleeping bags
  • warm clothing, coats
  • hats, gloves, scarves
  • new socks and underwear
  • plastic ponchos, bivy sack

Although there are many drop off locations on the North Shore, we will save you a trip …….just give us a call and we will pick up your items from you!  Judi 604-868-9812 or Cathy 604-760-2786

Thank you in advance for your help again this year. The unbelievable success of this yearly BLANKET DRIVE  is thanks to your donations!

Judi Whyte                                                                  Cathy Wood

604-868-9812                                                              604-760-2786

The net effect of having non-local buyers investing in a real estate market such as Vancouver, Toronto or New York is overall a “negative” one, according to two professors from UBC and New York who are jointly studying the out-of-town investment on cities.

http://www.rew.ca/news/out-of-town-buyers-have-negative-effect-on-locals-1.23068301?utm_source=Consumer%3A+Vancouver+Market+News&utm_campaign=2dbba4b1dc-REW_Consumer_News_Friday_October_10_20_2017&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8e94885b84-2dbba4b1dc-93614499

ll mortgage applicants will have to pass a “stress test” on their qualifying income – no matter how high their down payment – from January 1, the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OFSI) confirmed October 17.

The stress test was introduced last fall to all applicants of insured mortgages (those with less than 20% down), but has now been extended to all mortgage applicants including uninsured borrowers, as that group comprises a larger segment of the mortgage market.

http://www.rew.ca/news/stress-test-for-all-mortgages-to-launch-in-new-year-1.23068135?utm_source=Consumer%3A+Vancouver+Market+News&utm_campaign=2dbba4b1dc-REW_Consumer_News_Friday_October_10_20_2017&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8e94885b84-2dbba4b1dc-93614499

New homes in the City of North Vancouver are slated to be a little more expensive and a lot more efficient.

City council unanimously endorsed new construction guidelines in accordance with the B.C. Energy Step Code at an Oct. 2 meeting. The change is slated to come into effect as of Dec. 15.

http://www.nsnews.com/news/city-raises-building-standards-to-combat-greenhouse-gas-emissions-1.23063400 

The B.C. Real Estate Association is pushing back against a proposed ban on the controversial practice of allowing realtors to represent both sellers and buyers of a property.

The proposed ban on dual agency — also known as double-ending — is the most significant change among a number of rules proposed Wednesday by the B.C. government’s Office of the Superintendent of Real Estate. The draft rule changes, meant to protect consumers and improve transparency in B.C.’s red-hot real estate market, have been provided to realtors and the public for comment over the next month.

Dual agency has been restricted or banned in some U.S. states, and Ontario has also proposed a ban on it.

In an interview on Thursday, the B.C. Real Estate Association’s CEO, Robert Laing, said realtors worry that banning dual agency will hurt both consumers and realtors.

“Our biggest concern is the consumer’s right to make a choice about who they work with is being taken away from them,” Laing said. “The superintendent is trying to protect the consumers, but we think he is forgetting that in a free-enterprise market the consumer needs choice.”

http://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/realtors-group-criticizes-proposed-ban-on-dual-agency 

Vancouver's second-last downtown gas station sold to a development company for a bargain price of $72 million, and now its last fuel centre is on the market.

CTV News reports the Esso station located at the intersection of Burrard and Davie Street is listed without an asking price, but adds that it will likely sell for a similar price as its former competitor.

The city's skyline continues to expand, and may do so at the expense of commuters or visitors in and around the downtown core due to an increased inaccessibility of fuel. However, this surplus of earnings may prove valuable to land owners.

“[Unlike real estate,] pumping gasoline is not a very high margin business,” said Tsur Somerville, director of the University of British Columbia Centre for Urban Economics, to CTV News.

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2017/04/17/vancouver-gas-station-last_n_16063296.html?utm_hp_ref=ca-bc-business

B.C. real estate agents will be generally banned from acting as dual agents for both buyers and sellers under tough new rules drafted by the Office of the Superintendent of Real Estate and obtained by Postmedia News. 

The draft rules were based on recommendations from the report of an independent advisory group released in June 2016 to address problems in B.C.’s real estate industry. Those problems included some realtors putting their own interests ahead of clients, some not abiding by rules around reporting requirements to prevent money laundering, realtors failing to disclose assignment of contracts (known as shadow flipping).

The draft rules will be provided to realtors and the public, with superintendent Michael Noseworthy open to feedback over the next month. 

http://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/b-c-realtors-to-be-banned-from-dual-agency-as-part-of-rule-changes 

A 23-storey residential tower is being proposed for the Central Londsale neighbourhood of North Vancouver, following City Council's decision to bring the development to public hearing in the fall. 

The 166-unit development would be located at 1441 St. Georges Avenue, just west of the 14-storey Royal George rental building, which has stood in the area since 1968. The Royal George would be refurbished and be brought up to modern building codes as a part of the development. Nine additional rental units would also be added to the existing building. 

http://www.rew.ca/news/23-storey-residential-tower-proposed-for-north-vancouver-1.21496704

While residential real estate transactions continue to drop on a weekly basis as summer deepens, condo sale prices remain robust, increasing again during the week of July 24-30.

There were 323 home sales registered as sold last week, as of August 3, in the area covered by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver. Of those, 197 units were condos, 58 were townhomes, row houses or duplexes, and the remaining 68 were detached houses (including float homes and manufactured homes).

http://www.rew.ca/news/condo-sale-prices-defy-summer-market-slowdown-1.21590780

Owning real estate is a privilege, and in doing so, you are committing not only to serving your own personal interest, but potentially that of your family for years to come. A success story is increasingly possible, and for many of us real estate is our single most important asset when it comes to retaining value. When managed well, the rights in land associated with the building on it, not only maintain their value while factoring in inflation, but increase in value. The key to retaining your home’s value while ensuring comfort is good maintenance and a few simple upgrades.

http://www.rew.ca/news/how-to-maintain-the-value-of-your-biggest-asset-1.21248389

The Vancouver real estate market, far from reaching its peak in terms of unaffordability and lack of housing, is merely “dancing on the edges of a massive problem,” according to one leading development marketer.

Speaking to a packed audience at the Urban Development Institute luncheon on new home marketing at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver June 8, Cameron McNeill of MLA Canada added, “We ain’t seen nothing yet.”

http://www.rew.ca/news/vancouver-housing-market-ain-t-seen-nothing-yet-1.20508243

Affordability continues to be a "major vulnerability" in Vancouver's housing market, as the effects of the 15% foreign buyer tax implemented last year seem to be waning, according to RBC's Canadian Housing Health Check. The report, published July 27, measures affordability by examining the cost of home prices as a percentage of household income. 

The report found this ratio to be 79% in Vancouver, over 30% higher than the national average of 45.9%. The report states that anything above 45.1% poses a major risk.

http://www.rew.ca/news/affordability-still-a-major-vulnerability-in-vancouver-housing-market-1.21446622

Over $40,000 has been raised by real estate agents across Metro Vancouver for the Red Cross BC Fires Appeal, in an effort to aid victims of the ongoing wildfires affecting communities across British Columbia. 

Through the REALTORS Care® initiative, members of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) donated $10,000 to the cause, with the BC Real Estate Association (BCREA) matching the donation and Board members continuously raising money by organizing fundraising events around the province. 

http://www.rew.ca/news/local-real-estate-industry-comes-together-to-aid-wildfire-victims-1.21707642