Richmond Real Estate – What to Look Out For in 2013

If January is any indication of what real estate for 2013 is going to be like,  there has already been an increase in sales.  The sales have increased from the slow market Richmond in November to December. The British Columbia Real Estate Association predicts that residential sales in 2013 will  increase by 5.6 percent. 2013 is also a big year for British Columbia, because the government has decided to get rid of  HST, this transition will benefit both home owners and buyers.   

HST 

The Provincial government has waved HST as of April 1^st, 2013. New homes that complete on or after April 1^st will no longer have to pay HST, a temporary housing transition tax was also taken into effect on December 1, 2012. This will assist homes that are being built under HST new, an individual buying a new home under PST, or a home that is partly under PST and HST. For more useful information visit the HST in BC website.

http://www.hstinbc.ca/buying_goods/buying_a_home/

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

 Real Estate commission is considered a service so this means that commissions would only be taxed a 5% GST. According to Canada Revenue agency the rate of tax is determined on the date that it is payable, this means that homeowners with completion dates after March 31,2013, will not have to pay the HST.

Useful Links

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver has a list of resources that can assist in navigating through what the change from HST-PST changes.

http://www.bcrea.bc.ca/government-relations/hst-pst-resources

They have also provided a link of frequently asked questions regarding the changes.

http://www.bcrea.bc.ca/government-relations/pst-transition-rules

Attached below is the report from the British Columbia Real Estate Association

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

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This post was written by Shafik