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The City of Vancouver has approved an Empty Homes Tax aimed at boosting rental rates in our city’s incredibly hot market.

All non-principal residences left unoccupied for at least six months of the year will be subject to a 1% tax on the assessed value of the property, as of 2017.

The new tax is aimed at tackling affordability issues and increasing rental supply in Vancouver, where it is becoming impossible to even find a place to rent, let alone buy.

According to the City, more than 22,000 homes in Vancouver were found to be unoccupied or occupied by temporary residents on Census Day in May 2011.

Meanwhile, this year the City found 10,800 homes were not occupied, and concluded that put a strain on a housing market that’s already stretched to capacity.

There will be some exemptions on which land and homes are subject to the tax, including .

  • -properties are undergoing major renovations, under construction or in redevelopment...
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Check out the RE/MAX 2016 Spotlight on Luxury Report! 

Sales of homes priced over $1 million were up year-over-year in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Victoria and Oakville in the rst nine months of 2016. In the Greater Toronto Area and Vancouver, Canada’s largest high-end housing markets, sales of $3 million-plus homes saw signi cant increases, of 86 per cent in the GTA and 41 per cent in Vancouver.

While Vancouver sales of $1 million properties were up by three per cent overall, single-family home sales in that range declined by seven per cent year-over-year. One factor contributing to this decrease is the foreign buyer tax implemented by the provincial government in August, which has resulted in slowing demand for single-family detached homes from o -shore buyers. Additionally, higher inventory of luxury homes may be lessening buyers’ sense of urgency. 

Click on the icon below to read the full report. 



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Home sale and listing activity dip below historical averages in October

Reduced home sale and listing activity are changing market dynamics in communities across Metro Vancouver*.

Residential property sales in the region totalled 2,233 in October 2016, a 38.8 per cent decrease from the 3,646 sales recorded in October 2015 and a 0.9 per cent decrease compared to September 2016 when 2,253 homes sold.

Last month’s sales were 15 per cent below the 10-year October sales average.

“Changing market conditions compounded by a series of government interventions this year have put home buyers and sellers in a holding pattern,” Dan Morrison, Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) president said. “Potential buyers and sellers are taking a wait-and-see approach to try and better understand what these changes mean for them.” 

New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Metro Vancouver totalled 3,981 in October 2016. This represents a decrease...
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