Tips for Buyers
In a competing offer situation, buyers may be tempted to offer more for the property than they planned to and/or remove conditions from offers that are intended to protect them.
Before participating in a competing offer situation, buyers should consider factors such as:
The biggest story in the Toronto condo market over the past 6 months has been the disparity between supply and demand. Simply put, inventory (condos available for sale) is at an all time low, and demand is at an all time high. This has been a recipe for rapid price appreciation, frenzied buying, and sellers very much in control of negotiations.
Starting July 1, 2010 Ontarians can expect to pay a harmonized sales tax (HST) rate of 13% on a long list
goods and services that were previously exempt from the 8% Provincial Sales Tax (PST). While the impact of the tax will be felt by all Ontarians, the province’s 3 million homeowners and the thousands who buy and sell a home every year will be hit particularly hard by this latest tax grab. … Continue Reading
Buyers of new homes in Ontario will be affected by the province’s proposal to harmonize its retail sales tax with the federal goods and services tax. As a result, new homes in Ontario that are subject to GST (5%) will become subject to the provincial component of the HST (8%) as well.
Ontario recently released transitional rules for some new housing transactions that will straddle July 1, 2010, the effective date of the harmonized tax. Ontario also proposed changes to the new housing rebate announced in its 2009 budget.
Under the enhanced rebate announced on June 18, 2009, the $500,000 threshold to qualify for a rebate will be eliminated. As such, new homes purchased as primary residences across all price ranges will qualify for a rebate of up to $24,000 of the 8% provincial component of the HST.
The rebate will be 75% of the provincial portion of the HST payable on the purchase of a new home, up to a maximum rebate of $24,000 (i.e., $400,000 × 8% provincial component = $32,000 ×75% rebate = $24,000).
New home buyers may also be eligible for the federal GST new housing rebate, which generally equals 36% of the tax paid on the first $350,000 of the purchase price. The amount of the GST rebate is phased out on a straight-line basis for homes priced between $350,000 and less than $450,000.
| Price of Eligible New Home (not including GST or HST) | GST Portion — New Housing Rebate | Ontario Portion — New Housing Rebate | Total Rebates |
| $350,000 | $6,300 | $21,000 | $27,300 |
| $400,000 | $3,150 | $24,000 | $27,150 |
| $450,000 and above | $0 | $24,000 | $24,000 |
Qualified housing includes both newly constructed and substantially renovated homes, co-operative housing, owner-built housing, housing on leased land, mobile homes and modular homes for use as primary residences.
Proposed Measures Would Help Businesses and Consumers Prepare For Change.
The McGuinty government has proposed general transitional rules that would assist in the move to a Harmonized Sales Tax (HST).
These rules explain:
Which tax would apply for transactions that straddle July 1, 2010 – the current Retail Sales Tax (RST) or the Ontario portion of the HST, [...]
The Bank of Canada today announced that it is maintaining its target for the overnight rate at 1/4 per cent. The Bank Rate is unchanged at 1/2 per cent and the deposit rate is 1/4 per cent.
Global economic growth has been somewhat stronger than projected, with momentum in emerging-market economies increasing noticeably. Exceptional stimulus from [...]
Popular with urban sophisticates and lauded by architecture critic John Bentley Mays, highly-successful Richmond Town Manors is now complete on Richmond Street at Strachan Avenue, between King and Queen Streets West, just south of Trinity Bellwoods Park in Toronto. Only three of these choice residences remain, offering convenient living in modern surroundings inspired by the geometrical abstracts of master Dutch painter Pieter Mondrian. Hurry to take advantage of this exclusive opportunity in one of the city’s most up-and-coming neighbourhoods.