Check out my latest webpage,
www.kwfirsttimebuyersprogram.com
Are you eligible to apply?
If you are interested in the Affordable Home Ownership Program and would like to apply, you must:
Qualify for a mortgage,
Have a maximum household income of $68,000,
Be at least 18 years old and currently renting,
Not own or have an interest in a home,
Not owe money to a community housing landlord,
Be a legal resident of Canada, and
Intend to have this home as your one and only residence (you cannot transfer or lease it to someone else).
There are a number of details regarding this program that we can help you with. Contact me for details....
Jonathan Knight
Sales Representative
Re/Max Twin City Realty Inc., Brokerage
Phone: 519-579-4110 Office
Phone: 519-722-9095 Mobile
email: jknighthomes@gmail.com
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
HST, Potentially very bad for real estate
Ontario’s new homebuyers would face a massive tax grab under the proposed harmonization of the federal GST and Ontario PST, a new report released today concludes.
The report on the implications for sales tax harmonization on new home buyers in Ontario was written by veteran housing analyst Frank Clayton, PhD, of Canada’s largest independent real estate consulting and advisory firm Altus Group, for the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD). BILD is the Greater GTA affiliate of the Ontario Home Builders’ Association.
The report looked at nine Ontario municipalities and three different home types. It revealed tax increases for single detached homes ranging from $8,957 (Windsor) to $17,049 (Ottawa) in markets outside the GTA, and from $24,566 (Mississauga) to a whopping $46,676 (Toronto) within the GTA.
“All told, harmonization of PST and GST without any offsetting measures by the provincial government would rip $2.4 billon dollars out of the pockets of new home buyers, slamming the homeownership door shut in the face of many Ontarians,” said Stephen Dupuis, President and CEO of BILD.
BILD Chair Leith Moore added that the proposal for GST/PST harmonization couldn’t come at a worse time and runs completely contrary to the Province’s efforts to stimulate spending and jobs.
"There's no point putting the gas pedal to the metal from a stimulus standpoint while braking equally hard with the other foot, but that's what harmonizing the sales tax on housing amounts to," Moore said.
Meanwhile, Ontario Home Builders’ Association president Frank Giannone said harmonization is a “poison pill” for housing. “Housing is the only product that keeps on paying property tax after it is consumed. So to cripple the new home buyer market at this time not only damages the provincial economy, it also hurts governments in terms of revenues. In addition, the HST would also add additional tax to future renovation projects, and we all know tax increases drive consumers into the underground economy and into cash deals. It makes no sense,” he said.
Dupuis explained that builders are not fighting harmonization, but fighting for fair treatment of housing under a harmonized sales tax regime. “The reason housing gets hit so hard is that it is the biggest of the big ticket items and it’s not currently directly subject to PST, for good reason,” he said.
“As matters currently stand, builders are paying an average of two per cent PST embodied in the price of each new home and they’re prepared to keep on paying at that rate, notwithstanding all the other taxes, fees and levies they must endure.
“What home builders are not prepared to do is to sit idly by while home buyers are hammered to the tune of $2.4 billion due to harmonization. That's not on," Dupuis concluded.
The report on the implications for sales tax harmonization on new home buyers in Ontario was written by veteran housing analyst Frank Clayton, PhD, of Canada’s largest independent real estate consulting and advisory firm Altus Group, for the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD). BILD is the Greater GTA affiliate of the Ontario Home Builders’ Association.
The report looked at nine Ontario municipalities and three different home types. It revealed tax increases for single detached homes ranging from $8,957 (Windsor) to $17,049 (Ottawa) in markets outside the GTA, and from $24,566 (Mississauga) to a whopping $46,676 (Toronto) within the GTA.
“All told, harmonization of PST and GST without any offsetting measures by the provincial government would rip $2.4 billon dollars out of the pockets of new home buyers, slamming the homeownership door shut in the face of many Ontarians,” said Stephen Dupuis, President and CEO of BILD.
BILD Chair Leith Moore added that the proposal for GST/PST harmonization couldn’t come at a worse time and runs completely contrary to the Province’s efforts to stimulate spending and jobs.
"There's no point putting the gas pedal to the metal from a stimulus standpoint while braking equally hard with the other foot, but that's what harmonizing the sales tax on housing amounts to," Moore said.
Meanwhile, Ontario Home Builders’ Association president Frank Giannone said harmonization is a “poison pill” for housing. “Housing is the only product that keeps on paying property tax after it is consumed. So to cripple the new home buyer market at this time not only damages the provincial economy, it also hurts governments in terms of revenues. In addition, the HST would also add additional tax to future renovation projects, and we all know tax increases drive consumers into the underground economy and into cash deals. It makes no sense,” he said.
Dupuis explained that builders are not fighting harmonization, but fighting for fair treatment of housing under a harmonized sales tax regime. “The reason housing gets hit so hard is that it is the biggest of the big ticket items and it’s not currently directly subject to PST, for good reason,” he said.
“As matters currently stand, builders are paying an average of two per cent PST embodied in the price of each new home and they’re prepared to keep on paying at that rate, notwithstanding all the other taxes, fees and levies they must endure.
“What home builders are not prepared to do is to sit idly by while home buyers are hammered to the tune of $2.4 billion due to harmonization. That's not on," Dupuis concluded.
Environment audits becoming mandatory?
Ontario REALTORS® agree with the principle of energy efficiency for homes expressed in the Government of Ontario’s proposed mandatory home energy audit, but they say that the additional costs will hurt homeowners, especially in these economic times.
“This mandatory government regulation will impose a significant cost on home sellers. As with most Canadians, we don’t believe in green at any cost,” said Gerry Weir, President of the Ontario Real Estate Association. “It’s not the initial cost of these audits that concerns us,” he said. “Rather, the results of these audits will be used by home buyers as bargaining chips to significantly reduce the final selling price.
“Today’s economic downturn is a terrible time to introduce this measure. Home sellers are already worried about lost equity in their homes. A move like this, which will reduce their value even further, will not help them in any way,” Mr. Weir said.
REALTORS® favour government encouragement of energy efficiency in homes through expanded tax breaks and other measures.
In addition, REALTORS® point out that there is no one standard for energy audits. Different firms arrive at different assessments of the same house. “EnerGuide ratings of an existing home can and do vary between energy auditors, depending on the assumptions they make and the extent of data they collect on the building’s actual construction,” Mr. Weir said.
Furthermore, since there is no regulation of energy auditors, a conflict of interest can arise if a contractor conducts the audit. There is a natural inclination for that contractor to find problems that he can offer to repair for the homeowner.
Many details of the energy audit proposal have not been released. For instance, the government has not said if an energy audit will be required if a property is transferred between family members. Nor have they said how long an energy audit will be recognized as valid.
“This mandatory government regulation will impose a significant cost on home sellers. As with most Canadians, we don’t believe in green at any cost,” said Gerry Weir, President of the Ontario Real Estate Association. “It’s not the initial cost of these audits that concerns us,” he said. “Rather, the results of these audits will be used by home buyers as bargaining chips to significantly reduce the final selling price.
“Today’s economic downturn is a terrible time to introduce this measure. Home sellers are already worried about lost equity in their homes. A move like this, which will reduce their value even further, will not help them in any way,” Mr. Weir said.
REALTORS® favour government encouragement of energy efficiency in homes through expanded tax breaks and other measures.
In addition, REALTORS® point out that there is no one standard for energy audits. Different firms arrive at different assessments of the same house. “EnerGuide ratings of an existing home can and do vary between energy auditors, depending on the assumptions they make and the extent of data they collect on the building’s actual construction,” Mr. Weir said.
Furthermore, since there is no regulation of energy auditors, a conflict of interest can arise if a contractor conducts the audit. There is a natural inclination for that contractor to find problems that he can offer to repair for the homeowner.
Many details of the energy audit proposal have not been released. For instance, the government has not said if an energy audit will be required if a property is transferred between family members. Nor have they said how long an energy audit will be recognized as valid.
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