CITY OF VANCOUVER EMPTY HOMES TAX

• Applies to the property (not the owner) and applies only to properties located in Vancouver (Properties in the University Endowment Lands are not included).  
• Properties deemed to be empty will be subject to a tax of 1% of the property's 2018 assessed taxable value. 
• Does not apply to homes which are principle residences or tenanted for 6 months of the year (however, it's very difficult to terminate a 6 month term lease, unless the tenant agrees to leave).
• Must submit a declaration of the property will be deemed vacant and will be subject to tax and a $250 penalty for late filing.  Only one owner needs to file a declaration.  
• Can submit a notice of Complaint up to 34 days after you receive a Supplementary Vacancy Tax Notice disallowing your Empty Homes Tax Declaration.  After thatt you are out of luck - even if the property was exempt from the tax!

SPECULATION AND VACANCY TAX

• TAX applies to the owners, not the property.
• Applies to residential properties in designated taxable regions of BC. 

Designated Taxable Regions include:  The Capital Regional District Metro Vancouver Regional District (excuding Bowen Island and the Village of Lions bay but including UBC and University Endowment Lands, Abbotsford, Mission, Chilliwack, Kelowna, Nanaimo and Lantzville).  

• All owners must complete a declaration to claim any relevant exemptions by March 31, 2019. 
• payment is due by July 2, 2019 if tax is payable. 
• 144,000 people missed the deadline this year, so the government is backing off on penalizing them for now.  

IF YOU DON'T COMPLETE YOUR DECLARATION LETTER, YOU WILL BE CHARGED TAX AT THE MINIMUM TAX RATE OF 2%

• Application of the Act:  applies retroactively to the 2018 calendar year.  Retroactive legislation is always considered a poor choice, because it doesn't allow people to properly plan their affairs.  
• Highest Tax Rate for foreign entities and satellite families:  2% of the assessed value. 
• Lowest Tax Rate - Canadian Citizens, permanent residents and residents of B.C.:  tax rate of 0.5%

2018 CALENDAR YEAR - applicable tax rate is 0.5% for every owner regardless of residency status (assuming that they file a declaration).  

Common Exemptions:  Principle Residence, Tenanted Property, Year of Acquisition Exemption, Rental restriction by-laws (2018 and 2019 years only - after that you have to move in, rent it, sell it or pay the tax). 

GOODS AND SERVICES TAX (GST)

• GST does NOT apply to pre-owned (used) residential homes;  GST is applicable on properties that are newly built or have been substantially renovated (90% or more).  
• New housing rebate is available:  equals to 36% of the GST and the rebate is up to $6300 for homes with a purchase price of $350,000 or less.  Rebate is available if the home is priced between $350,000 and $450,000. Over $450,000 no rebate is available. 
• GST is 5% of the purhcase price and is due on Completion 
• GST can be payable TWICE on newly constructed residential properties (e.g. if GST was paid on the original purchase and the property was re-sold without being occupied in the interim)

Condominium owners in Metro Vancouver are opening up 2019 property-assessment notices showing increases in value from a year ago. But much has changed in property markets since B.C. Assessment set those values on July 1.

Across most of Metro Vancouver, condo prices are down 6.4 per cent since July to a benchmark prices $664,100, according to figures released Thursday by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver. The benchmark is based on the average price, adjusted to reflect “typical” condos among those sold.

That is in contrast to B.C. Assessments’ July 1 appraisals that showed average increases from July 2018 of anywhere from six per cent in the city of Vancouver to as much as 23 per cent in Whistler, while assessments on less affordable detached homes were down four per cent in Vancouver and North Vancouver and as much as 12 per cent in West Vancouver.

"Since then, the numbers suggest a broader decline in the market,” said Bryan Yu, deputy chief economist with Central 1 Credit, with sales and prices for condos trending lower along with detached homes.

“This year, when (municipal property) taxes roll around, you’re going to see condo owners take a little more of a hit in terms of their taxes, relative to single-family,” Yu said.

Yu said sales figures show that the condo market became “red hot” in 2016 as detached-home prices soared out of the reach of many buyers, pushing them into the strata-property market. That trend lasted through 2017 and into 2018.

Now, factors such as higher mortgage interest rates and stiffer mortgage-qualification rules have reduced the spending power of buyers and cooled demand at all levels of the market, Yu said.

“In terms of the overall Lower Mainland, our view, at least for benchmark prices, is that they’re already down six per cent (for condominiums),” Yu said. “We see another up to four or five per cent more decline in the broader market (in 2019).”

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver said on Thursday that 24,619 sales were recorded through MLS for all of 2018, a near 32 per cent decline from 2017. Within that, condo sales represented 12,771 transactions, a 30 per cent reduction.

And since July, in Metro Vancouver submarkets, benchmark condo prices have declined as much as 14 per cent in Squamish (now $455,900), 10.3 per cent in Port Moody (now $627,300), 6.3 per cent on Vancouver’s east side (now $538,000) and seven per cent on Vancouver’s west side (now $783,700), according to real-estate-board figures.

For the B.C. Assessment Authority’s assessors, such changing markets don’t create a big challenge, said regional assessor Tina Ireland, because their task is to provide a snapshot of property values on July 1.

“The reason why we do that is so the same market conditions apply to everyone’s assessment,” Ireland said, “to determine a property owners’ share of property taxes in their community.”

However, Ireland said it can be “a bit more of a challenge” explaining assessments to property owners who might be opening their assessment notices and saying “my property is no longer worth that.”

B.C. Assessment took about 1,000 calls from the public on Wednesday, the authority’s first business day since assessments were made public Dec. 31, which is a 60 per cent increase from 2017, Ireland said, but it is difficult to know how big a factor the declining market values is in those inquiries.

For those homeowners who have questions, Ireland suggested consulting the authority’s website for more information about their assessments. It also has tools to compare assessments.

If homeowners have more questions, Ireland said they can call B.C. Assessment for an explanation, and if they are still not satisfied, have the right to appeal their assessments. The deadline to file an appeal is Jan. 31.

Dear friends and valued clients;

By now, most of you have received your Propery Assessments for 2019.  Many of your assessed values are incorrect as the data was compiled back in July 2018.  The real estate market has shifted and many of the assessed values are  over inflated.  

If you feel that your assessed value may be incorrect, you have options.  

-  Firstly, contact me for updated value of your home.  I'd be happy to propvide this at no cost or obligation to you.  

-  Secondly, contact the BC Assessment Office at 1-866-825-8322 or 604-739-8588 to discuss your Assessment. 

-  If you still feel that your Assessment is incorrect, you may file for a Notice of Complaint (appeal) for a formal hearing with an Independent Property Assessment Review Panel. The Notice of Complaint Form (appeal) can be found online at www.bcassessment.ca.   A complaint (appeal) must be filed online, by mail, or delivered in person to your local BC Assessment Office.  

Hearings are heard between February 1st to March 15th, 2019.  A notice of hearing will be sent to you approximately 5 days prior to your hearing. 

Again, please note that the Deadline for Filing a Complaint (Appeal) is JANUARY 31, 2019.