Canada Housing/Debt: Trust me, I'm a landlord.

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Debate & Discussion > Canada Housing/Debt: Trust me, I'm a landlord.

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ZShakespeare: Jul 20, 2003; The devil can cite Scripture for his purpose!

I visited Jamaica a couple months back and absolutely loved it.

Despite the fact that the murder rate is sky high.

# ? Feb 13, 2016 02:11

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# ? May 9, 2024 23:49

TheOtherContraGuy: Jul 4, 2007; brave skeleton sacrifice

etalian posted:

Honestly you could only think Vancouver was the best city in the world if you never travelled.

I've been to everything continent and the one place I rather live is Hong Kong, which is even more expensive. I just wish I could make more money as a software developer here.

# ? Feb 13, 2016 02:16

linoleum floors: Mar 25, 2012; Please. Let me tell you all about how you're all idiots. I am of superior intellect here. Go suck some dicks. You have all fucking stupid opinions. This is my fucking opinion.

nice troll

# ? Feb 13, 2016 02:48

Ran Mad Dog: Aug 15, 2006; Algeapea and noodles - I will take your udon!

HookShot posted:

It hasn't really affected me directly yet other than groceries going up (I'm pretty sure domestic stuff has taken advantage to also raise their prices) but the next time I have to buy a new pair of race skis I'm probably going to cry a little.

Oh wow man, must be loving rough :rolleyes:

# ? Feb 13, 2016 03:05

snorch: Jul 27, 2009

Longboard prices are through the roof!

# ? Feb 13, 2016 03:24

large hands: Jan 24, 2006

So I married a lifty

# ? Feb 13, 2016 04:21

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

HookShot posted:

Just because you liked Barcelona on your two week holiday there doesn't mean it's a good place to live.

Ohhhh yeah. I've made that mistake, and it led to the very worst decision I've made in my life: moving to Montreal!

Spain is a different matter, though. I could easily live in Madrid, no problem -- after a month, I was very disappointed to leave. My mean time-to-incredible-frustration with Montreal is now sitting around 2-3 days, by comparison.

# ? Feb 13, 2016 04:21

namaste friends: Sep 18, 2004; by Smythe

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news...rticle28751620/

Here's the loving answer staring everyone in the face: Mike de Jong can't do gently caress about housing because he's the provincial minister of finance. You can't implement macroprudential policy at a provincial level. You can't shut down this stupid loving 1 million dollar CMHC limit, you can't institute higher capitalization rates for banks, you can't force mortgage brokers and other forms of shadow banks to be more stringent in whom they lend to, you can't loving implement a regional mortgage insurance cap and you sure as gently caress can't be an effective federal finance minister and implement macroprudential policy when you're speculating on 7 properties.

gently caress this province gently caress this country and especially, gently caress you, dear fellow canadian cuntface

# ? Feb 13, 2016 04:36

HookShot: Dec 26, 2005

PT6A posted:

Spain is a different matter, though. I could easily live in Madrid, no problem -- after a month, I was very disappointed to leave. My mean time-to-incredible-frustration with Montreal is now sitting around 2-3 days, by comparison.

Really? Because youth unemployment is around 60% there right now.

I'm sure you enjoyed your month on holiday there. I'm sure when you're unemployed and desperate to become one of the rare milleuristas, people making 1kE per month, you'll find it a lot less fun.

People do not understand that visiting somewhere (even somewhat longish term like a month) and living there are two very, very different things.

# ? Feb 13, 2016 04:47

Lexicon: Jul 29, 2003; I had a beer with Stephen Harper once and now I like him.

PT6A posted:

Ohhhh yeah. I've made that mistake, and it led to the very worst decision I've made in my life: moving to Montreal!

Spain is a different matter, though. I could easily live in Madrid, no problem -- after a month, I was very disappointed to leave. My mean time-to-incredible-frustration with Montreal is now sitting around 2-3 days, by comparison.

Care to elaborate on what irks you so much about Montreal?

# ? Feb 13, 2016 04:47

Rime: Nov 2, 2011; by Games Forum

HookShot posted:

People do not understand that visiting somewhere (even somewhat longish term like a month) and living there are two very, very different things.

I would argue that living somewhere like that on an external salary, such as a remote contract worker, is the same as well. You're still insulated from the local culture by virtue of being fuckin' rich in comparison, even after a year somewhere most people will still be tourists and barely able to communicate.

Eg: Peace Corps volunteers are some of the worst little shits I've ever met in my life.

# ? Feb 13, 2016 05:09

namaste friends: Sep 18, 2004; by Smythe

HookShot posted:

Really? Because youth unemployment is around 60% there right now.

I'm sure you enjoyed your month on holiday there. I'm sure when you're unemployed and desperate to become one of the rare milleuristas, people making 1kE per month, you'll find it a lot less fun.

People do not understand that visiting somewhere (even somewhat longish term like a month) and living there are two very, very different things.

he probably does spain like an english chav. lives in an enclave of chav expats, brushes his teeth with gin, gorges on lovely english food, and forces himself to laugh at HAHAHAAHAHAHAHHAAHAHHAHA so funny english comedy

# ? Feb 13, 2016 05:15

Nine of Eight: Apr 28, 2011; LICK IT OFF, AND PUT IT BACK IN; Dinosaur Gum

Lexicon posted:

Care to elaborate on what irks you so much about Montreal?

See CI's post. While there is s bunch of lovely stuff going on re: two solitudes in Quebec, there is a huge amount of English people who are more tan ready to blow the gently caress up whenever someone refuses to serve them in English at a French restaurant hall or the likes. Not that this means Pierre Karl Peladeau showing up late to an English band's concert and yelling at them to play a French song isn't any less funny.

# ? Feb 13, 2016 05:29

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

HookShot posted:

Really? Because youth unemployment is around 60% there right now.

I'm sure you enjoyed your month on holiday there. I'm sure when you're unemployed and desperate to become one of the rare milleuristas, people making 1kE per month, you'll find it a lot less fun.

People do not understand that visiting somewhere (even somewhat longish term like a month) and living there are two very, very different things.

I'm saying I could live there, not that it's a perfect place to live for everyone. If I didn't have the ability to work from pretty much anywhere, as well as English fluency and all the other skills I've learned in Canada, I agree it would probably be lovely. I don't think that was the premise of your statement, though. I'm sure I'd dislike any place I lived if I were unemployed there, but there are certain places you'd have to pay me an awful lot to ever consider living. The number for Montreal, for example, would be at least seven figures per year.

Lexicon posted:

Care to elaborate on what irks you so much about Montreal?

Mainly the people, English and French alike. The shitiness is focused around the downtown area, and abates as you go further out.

PT6A fucked around with this message at 05:43 on Feb 13, 2016

# ? Feb 13, 2016 05:41

Furnaceface: Oct 21, 2004

CI I hope you set aside some time to watch the NBA All-Star game since your favorite people, The Property Brothers, participated in it. :v:

# ? Feb 13, 2016 08:23

I would blow Dane Cook: Dec 26, 2008; Can't post for 17 hours!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-j27VHwKWw

# ? Feb 13, 2016 11:34

Tighclops: Jan 23, 2008; Unable to deal with it; Grimey Drawer

Jumpingmanjim posted:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-j27VHwKWw

This video contains content from NBC Universal, who has blocked it in your colony on copyright grounds.

# ? Feb 13, 2016 19:19

OhYeah: Jan 20, 2007; 1. Currently the most prevalent form of decision-making in the western world

2. While you are correct in saying that the society owns

3. You have not for a second demonstrated here why

4. I love the way that you equate "state" with "bureaucracy". Is that how you really feel about the state

Cultural Imperial posted:

he probably does spain like an english chav. lives in an enclave of chav expats, brushes his teeth with gin, gorges on lovely english food, and forces himself to laugh at HAHAHAAHAHAHAHHAAHAHHAHA so funny english comedy

Why do you hate chavs so much? Did a chav once steal your girlfriend? Or your wallet?

# ? Feb 13, 2016 19:41

namaste friends: Sep 18, 2004; by Smythe

Have you ever had to socialize with the British working class?

# ? Feb 13, 2016 19:44

namaste friends: Sep 18, 2004; by Smythe

It's not all loving coronation st and east enders

# ? Feb 13, 2016 19:47

Lexicon: Jul 29, 2003; I had a beer with Stephen Harper once and now I like him.

Cultural Imperial posted:

It's not all loving coronation st and east enders

I'd argue it is. Which is the problem.

# ? Feb 13, 2016 19:52

namaste friends: Sep 18, 2004; by Smythe

It's more a cross between fish tank and Harry Browne

# ? Feb 13, 2016 19:58

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

OhYeah posted:

Why do you hate chavs so much? Did a chav once steal your girlfriend? Or your wallet?

How is it possible to not hate chavs that much? CI is right, the British working class is miserable to deal with.

# ? Feb 13, 2016 20:05

Dreylad: Jun 19, 2001

If only the poor knew their place.

# ? Feb 14, 2016 00:46

Lain Iwakura: Aug 5, 2004; The body exists only to verify one's own existence.; Taco Defender

https://twitter.com/bkclifford/status/698986952893149184

# ? Feb 15, 2016 00:35

Professor Shark: May 22, 2012

quote:
Going bankrupt a bitter pill for N.L. worker in wake of oil price collapse
_{Casualties of the Collapse: More workers tossed into turmoil by economic downturn}

_{By Terry Roberts, CBC News Posted: Feb 14, 2016 6:00 PM NT Last Updated: Feb 14, 2016 6:00 PM NT}

Jamie Parsons appeared to have it all a year ago. A job in the Alberta oilsands earning $140,000 and a strong sense of pride and self-respect.

The crash in oil prices has ripped it all away. His job. His income. His dignity.

He finds it hard even to look his wife Lisa in the eye as she goes off to work for long hours at a job in the service industry.

"It's brutal. I have no pride left," he said recently during an interview at his home in Davidsville, a small central Newfoundland community north of Gander.
Tossed into turmoil

The 46-year-old is one of a growing number of people from Newfoundland and Labrador tossed into turmoil because of a crash in the price of oil and other natural resources.

Workers in the province are being hit from both sides as fly-in, fly-out jobs in Alberta dry up and Newfoundland's own offshore sector also sheds workers.
Jamie Parsons ... pets

When he's not searching for work, Jamie Parsons spends more time with his pets these days. (Bruce Tilley/CBC)

The mining sector has also been hit hard, from the closure of the Teck Resources mine in central Newfoundland to the teetering iron ore industry in Labrador West.

According to Statistics Canada, there are 800 fewer jobs in Newfoundland and Labrador's oil and mining sectors, a drop of nine per cent in just one year.

These are well paying jobs that result in tremendous spinoffs for the provincial economy.

The numbers of transient workers who have been displaced by the storm hitting Alberta's oil sector are less certain, but Parsons is an extreme example of what's happening.

He lost his job 13 months ago. With just three years' experience as a truck driver, he finds the few jobs still available are being scooped up by others.

"I got called into the office on the eighth of January was was told, 'I'm sorry, we have no trucks on the road. We have no men working. We don't need you anymore,'" said Parsons.

He hit rock bottom in December. His employment insurance benefits ended, and he declared bankruptcy.

"There's nothing more to sell. Declaring bankruptcy just about broke me."

He now drives a $350 Ford Focus and spends his days searching for a job � any job.

"There is no pride because I can't stay at home and lose my self-respect whilst my wife is going out to work to provide for us and me being a drain on the system."
Harder times ahead

Spending more time at home gives him more time to think, and that adds to his depression.

"I've got a fantastic partner in this life and she stood by me. I even gave her the option of saying, 'You know, I'm bust now so if you want to get out while the getting is good, now's the time.' But she stayed and she's been my rock," Parsons said.

Stories like his are becoming more common as the job market shrinks.

This is expected to intensify as major construction projects such as Hebron at Bull Arm, the Long Harbour nickel plant and the Muskrat Falls hydro project eventually wind down.

The number of personal bankruptcies in the province grew by nine per cent in 2015, and there were a record number of people seeking to have their debt payments restructured through a process called consumer proposals.

Yvette Power, who advises people in financial trouble from Deloitte's office in St. John's, said more and more transient workers are coming to her for help.

"A typical client is a transient worker that has worked for the last several years making probably from $100,000 to $200,000," she said.

"And now they're laid off or back here working at a reduction in their income. It's certainly a challenge for people to maintain that same lifestyle when they have such a reduction in their income."
'A horrible, abrupt end'

While sectors such as real estate, retail and auto sales slow down, however, the auction business is growing.

The owner of Fitzpatrick's Auctions in St. John's has seen a 25 per cent increase in the number of vehicles and other big-ticket items going on the auction block.

"People are saying they were in the oilpatch, working in Alberta, making great money, and I don't think they realized it was ever going to stop," said Blair Loveless.

"Who would have ever thought that a price of oil would go down to $30 a barrel?"

Parsons certainly didn't, and now he's paying a heavy price.

"I've got no regrets with Alberta. Just that it came to a horrible, abrupt end," he said.

# ? Feb 15, 2016 01:14

B33rChiller: Aug 18, 2011

quote:

"People are saying they were in the oilpatch, working in Alberta, making great money, and I don't think they realized it was ever going to stop," said Blair Loveless.

"Who would have ever thought that a price of oil would go down to $30 a barrel?"

There's a term for this I think. Something like "willful blindness" or maybe "ignorance"?

The featured out of work trucker was in his 20's the last time this happened. It's not like he's too young to remember. I'm 10 years younger than him, and I remember seeing this happen first hand. I think it was some time around 96 or 97. In my lovely little Alberta hometown, it went from can you say "What'er ya at by"? You're hired! to where you can't buy a job overnight. In the lead up to that, anyone who had been around a while was telling the young bucks to save their money, and not count on the good times lasting. Everyone who wasn't a total moron knew oil is a boom-bust industry, and they shouldn't live a lifestyle that requires ongoing 6-figure income.
Unfortunately these kinds of people (those who know enough to save) are a minority in an industry where you can make 6-figures without any kind of education/literacy/critical thinking skill.

quote:

Jamie Parsons appeared to have it all a year ago. A job in the Alberta oilsands earning $140,000 and a strong sense of pride and self-respect.

The crash in oil prices has ripped it all away. His job. His income. His dignity.

And maybe don't wrap your identity and self-worth so tightly to your occupation. Your job should be what you do to make money, not who you are.

Overall a good cautionary tale for future generations of knuckle draggers.

B33rChiller fucked around with this message at 02:01 on Feb 15, 2016

# ? Feb 15, 2016 01:54

Furnaceface: Oct 21, 2004

quote:

"Who would have ever thought that a price of oil would go down to $30 a barrel?"

Someone buy this guy a SA account and send him to this thread.

# ? Feb 15, 2016 02:34

Precambrian Video Games: Aug 19, 2002

I have no regrets, other than losing my $140k/year truck driving job and having to declare bankruptcy because I saved nothing and was up to my ears in debt and now I've been unemployed for a year, languishing in depression and only supported by my wife working a lovely service job.

But other than that, no regrets!!

# ? Feb 15, 2016 02:57

Maels: Jan 22, 2004; Rotund Lord of Shit Mountain

I'm looking to move to (or around) Toronto in the summer. I have 10 years xp in software project management and web development and need to find work. Is this a good idea?

e: not in Canada right now but I'm moving to Toronto for certain. Just want to know how bad it is in tech really.

Maels fucked around with this message at 03:26 on Feb 15, 2016

# ? Feb 15, 2016 03:22

triplexpac: Mar 24, 2007; Suck it
Two tears in a bucket
And then another thing
I'm not the one they'll try their luck with
Hit hard like brass knuckles
See your face through the turnbuckle dude
I got no love for you

I love how they had to throw in the shame of him driving a Ford Focus now. The poor guy!

# ? Feb 15, 2016 03:23

Vehementi: Jul 25, 2003; YOSPOS

Maels posted:

I'm looking to move to (or around) Toronto in the summer. I have 10 years xp in software project management and web development and need to find work. Is this a good idea?

e: not in Canada right now but I'm moving to Toronto for certain. Just want to know how bad it is in tech really.

You'll be fine, just don't expect to be making SV salaries.

# ? Feb 15, 2016 04:01

Furnaceface: Oct 21, 2004

Maels posted:

I'm looking to move to (or around) Toronto in the summer. I have 10 years xp in software project management and web development and need to find work. Is this a good idea?

e: not in Canada right now but I'm moving to Toronto for certain. Just want to know how bad it is in tech really.

The pay isnt as good here versus the US but there are still a decent number of tech jobs in Toronto. The hard part will be finding a good place to rent that isnt either run by a slum lord or priced at something ludicrous (or both if move to Mississauga :v:

# ? Feb 15, 2016 04:26

Risky Bisquick: Jan 18, 2008; PLEASE LET ME WRITE YOUR VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENT SO I CAN FURTHER DEMONSTRATE THE CALAMITY THAT IS OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM.; Buglord

You'll get around 100k at a reputable company as a PM. Alternatively once established be a consultant and rake in the money from finance / government.

# ? Feb 15, 2016 04:55

Maels: Jan 22, 2004; Rotund Lord of Shit Mountain

Thanks! Hopefully I can rent out in Durham and commute for a year or two, wait for prices to get sane before I buy.

# ? Feb 15, 2016 05:12

Femtosecond: Aug 2, 2003

etalian posted:

Honestly you could only think Vancouver was the best city in the world if you never travelled.

There are plenty of great cities in the world, but more often then not they're also incredibly expensive.

I'm in Melbourne at the moment and it's fantastic, but I'm pretty sure the housing costs here are just as nonsense crazy as Vancouver's. I was in Auckland before. It is worse than Vancouver but its housing market is nonetheless absurdly expensive.

What are the top class cities that are cheap bargains? They're out there but usually only for people that love the city for some niche thing that most people don't care about (eg. Skiing or surfing town)

Femtosecond fucked around with this message at 05:47 on Feb 15, 2016

# ? Feb 15, 2016 05:19

I would blow Dane Cook: Dec 26, 2008; Can't post for 17 hours!

quote:

Morrison: Negative gearing your �one chance to build wealth�

Mr Morrison has been leaving clues about the changes he wants to make to tax breaks for Australians who invest in property.

He has attacked Labor�s policy � under which only new properties would be able to be negatively geared after a proposed 2017 introduction � saying everyday mum-and-dad investors would be hurt.

He told 2GB radio this morning that two�thirds of people are taking advantage of negative gearing have a taxable income less than $80,000, while 70 per cent of people only negatively gear one property.

�[Shadow treasurer] Chris Bowen thinks everyone who�s on negative gearing is on a rort,� he said.

�He thinks they�re big property barons and you�ve got to go and tax them and slam.

�Well, for most middle-income people it is the one chance they�ve got to build some wealth."

And there it is, the Property Council mindset writ large, where Mr Morrison used to be head of research.

This is either an admission of how completely distorted our economy is and therefore is an argument in favour of the Labor reforms, or it is a totally inappropriate (not to mention wrong) attitude for a Treasurer given it privileges a single asset class and its beneficiaries with whom he has a long association.

http://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2016/02/morrison-negative-gearing-your-once-chance-to-build-wealth/

# ? Feb 15, 2016 05:40

I would blow Dane Cook: Dec 26, 2008; Can't post for 17 hours!

Femtosecond posted:

There are plenty of great cities in the world, but more often then not they're also incredibly expensive.

I'm in Melbourne at the moment and it's fantastic, but I'm pretty sure the housing costs here are just as nonsense crazy as Vancouver's. I was in Auckland before. It is worse than Vancouver but it's housing market is nonetheless absurdly expensive.

What are the top class cities that are cheap bargains? They're out there but usually only for people that love the city for some niche thing that most people don't care about (eg. Skiing or surfing town)

Brisbane.

Nah just kidding it is a hole.

# ? Feb 15, 2016 05:41

Baronjutter: Dec 31, 2007; "Tiny Trains"

Berlin's pretty affordable. Reasonable ex-pat opportunities and cheap cost of living in Prague too.

# ? Feb 15, 2016 06:13

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# ? May 9, 2024 23:49

Mandibular Fiasco: Oct 14, 2012

The latest in Kathy Tomlinson's series in the Globe and Mail:

quote:

Questionable tactics encourage B.C. homebuyers to avoid taxes
KATHY TOMLINSON
VANCOUVER � The Globe and Mail
Published Monday, Feb. 15, 2016 12:00AM EST
Last updated Monday, Feb. 15, 2016 12:21AM EST

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/investigations/questionable-tactics-encourage-bc-homebuyers-to-avoid-taxes/article28758483/

Some real estate listings in British Columbia are marketing newly built, potentially vacant properties as personal residences, a deceptive tactic that can encourage buyers to avoid paying the GST and enable sellers to avoid declaring capital gains on multimillion-dollar transactions.

The phenomenon, observed in Vancouver�s high-end housing market, raises the prospect of significant lost revenues through federal tax evasion in a sector already identified by the Canada Revenue Agency as high risk.

As part of an ongoing investigation into the forces that drive Vancouver�s expensive housing market, The Globe and Mail examined hundreds of property listings and marketing materials in the Lower Mainland for evidence of questionable claims by agents.

While there is no way to quantify the scope of the phenomenon, the data suggest various forms and degrees of deception are common. Some have potential tax implications, while others raise ethical questions about a profession that has come under heightened scrutiny from the province and the industry regulator.

With the average price of a single-family detached home in Vancouver at $2.5-million, the potential tax savings for buyers and sellers is significant. A newly built house at that price would cost the buyer an additional $125,000 in GST, plus capital gains of tens of thousands by a seller who bought and sold the property as a business venture. Many newly built homes are priced well above the average, so for Ottawa, the losses on a single deceptive transaction can be considerable.

Several experienced Vancouver-area agents who spoke with The Globe said they believe the risk of tax evasion is high in the sales of new, multimillion-dollar homes, based on how they see other agents promoting the properties firsthand. The Globe was referred to dozens of recent sales, where brand-new and seemingly vacant homes � some staged with furniture � were being shown to clients as �owner-occupied� � therefore tax-free � when in fact no one appears to have lived in them. In addition, The Globe also found dozens of newly constructed homes currently marketed by agents as GST exempt, an exemption the Real Estate Council of B.C. cautions agents against advertising without the advice of a tax expert.

The Canada Revenue Agency acknowledged this type of tax evasion is a problem in the Vancouver area, where speculation in the housing market has drawn increased scrutiny. The GST is supposed to apply to all sales of new homes, except in rare circumstances.

Red flags
While it is impossible to demonstrate tax evasion through public records, The Globe reviewed and compared MLS listings, title records, occupancy permit dates, corporate records, property histories and new-home warranties for red flags that indicate risk. More than 50 listings had some evidence of misleading information or questionable claims of tax-exemption on properties marketed as new. The Globe then zeroed in on more than a dozen properties that had multiple flags. The properties were all owned by builders or speculators who purchased a house, knocked it down, constructed a new one and then put it up for sale.

�There are no exemptions in the GST/HST legislation that would apply to the sale of the home in this scenario,� the Canada Revenue Agency said in a statement. Buyers must pay tax on the first sale of any new house if it was built as a business venture and then put on the market, the agency said.

Despite being newly built and never sold, the homes in question were classified as owner-occupied on Multiple Listing Service data � an indicator the GST would not apply. In each case, the section in MLS property information that asks whether GST is included was left blank.

Various exemptions for homeowners and builders exist, some with subjective qualities that make them vulnerable to abuse. According to the CRA, a newly built home can be considered tax-exempt if the owner built it for private use and sold it later; or if the owner built with plans to sell, but changed their mind, moved in, and decided to sell after having done so.

There is an additional rule under B.C.�s homeowner-protection legislation that owners must live in a new home for a year before trying to sell, unless they prove they�re facing undue hardship. That provision exists so people who build homes for personal use don�t have to get a new-home warranty, which is a costly and cumbersome process. All of the dozen properties The Globe examined in depth had new-home warranties, suggesting the owners built with the intention to sell.

This house in the suburb of Burnaby was built in 2015 and sold for $1.65-million in September. The MLS listing said the house was brand new and vacant. Rafal Gerszak/For The Globe and Mail
�You have to be very careful�
One luxury home in Vancouver was completed in January, 2015, and immediately put up for sale, for $6.8-million. The GST at that price would be $344,000. New Coast Realty agent Sandra Li took over the listing from another agent in August and advertised the property for several months as new and tax-exempt � or �new home with NO GST!� in the enthusiastic parlance of real estate marketing. Online photos showed pristine, empty rooms.

It was built by a small-scale developer, who also owns the house.

Last month, The Globe asked Ms. Li why she promoted it as tax free. �The house is new,� she said, �but it is one year old already.�

According to CRA rules, a new unoccupied home that�s never been sold is still subject to GST no matter how long it takes to sell it.

Two days after The Globe contacted Ms. Li, the ads suggesting the property was GST exempt were removed from real estate agents� websites. On MLS, the house was then listed as new, but with �GST included.� In January, the property sold for $5.25-million.

Vancouver lawyer Ron Usher, who advises notaries on real estate transactions, said that if a buyer purchases a new house, tax free, they could be on the hook if and when the CRA caught on. Even if the buyer was deceived by a seller or agent, the CRA could put a lien on the property.

�The buyer would have to pay. And that�s a serious amount of money,� Mr. Usher said. �You have to be very careful about claims of GST exemption.�

Alternatively, he said, a buyer who has been misled by a listing could be in for a shock at closing if a lawyer or notary determines the transaction is taxable, an eleventh-hour change that could add hundreds of thousands of dollars to the purchase price.

�On every deal, the practice is to have a signed declaration, from the vendor, about the GST status,� he said. �If tax applied, the buyer may have a cause of action against the realtor for misrepresentation.�

Formal complaints about agents misrepresenting the GST are rare, however. A review of recent Real Estate Council of B.C. disciplinary records found just two cases, from 2012 and 2015, in which buyers complained to the regulator that they were misled to believe his purchase was GST exempt.

In the 2015 case, the buyer learned the day before closing that he would have to pay $12,450 in tax on his $250,000 Kelowna-area condominium. None of the paperwork made reference to GST. The council ruled that the agent, Jason Stoesz, should have advised the buyer to seek expert advice on whether he would have to pay the GST, before the deal was made. He was given a reprimand.

In a complaint-based regulatory system, however, there is debatable impetus for buyers � who stand to benefit greatly from GST exemption � to complain about their own transactions to the Real Estate Council.

Another house in the Vancouver suburb of Burnaby was built in 2015 and sold for $1.65-million in September, 2015. The MLS listing said the house was new and vacant.

The property even had a new address, which was issued as part of the building permit, with two eights in it � a marketing move meant to attract Chinese buyers, some of whom consider that number lucky and are willing to pay a premium for properties with eights in the address. Agent Parm Grewal of RE/MAX also advertised the home with no GST. The tax owing by the buyer would have been $82,900. According to public documents, the final sale price registered with the province was the same as the advertised price on MLS, an indicator the GST was not included in the sale price. (GST is typically not included in the final purchase price registered with the province when it was paid over and above the sale price.)

It is unclear if the GST was paid in the end. Mr. Grewal did not respond to multiple requests for comment from The Globe.

The CRA said it is auditing cases of possible GST evasion on new-home sales, but declined to give specifics.

�This forms a component of the CRA�s greater approach to compliance,� the agency said. �Over the past year, the CRA has increased its level of effort in investigating real estate cases in the Metro Vancouver area.�

The CRA is also investigating scores of cases of undeclared capital gains, many involving homeowners who evade taxes by wrongfully declaring investment properties as principal residences � a distinction that is extremely difficult for the authorities to police, because of patchwork data and voluntary disclosures, not to mention the vagaries of homeowners� lives (a couple�s investment property, for example, could arguably become a primary residence in the event of a separation).

According to federal law, the sale of a principal residence is not subject to capital-gains taxation. The seller of a property that is considered a business venture, however, is required to declare capital gains on their income taxes. And in a lucrative housing market like Vancouver�s, those gains can be substantial.

Since April, the CRA said, 41 people have been audited on speculative Vancouver real estate transactions. They�ve been ordered to pay $1-million in extra taxes, plus another $750,000, in 13 cases of gross negligence. In February, the agency told The Globe it was investigating another 128 cases.

The Real Estate Council of B.C. advises its members to refer clients to accountants or lawyers for GST and capital-gains determinations, because agents are not tax experts. �They are responsible for the accuracy of any advice they may provide,� said Maureen Coleman, the regulator�s professional standards adviser.

Ms. Coleman said the council has investigated complaints about licensees misrepresenting how much GST should be paid. However, none of those cases was referred to the CRA.

�We deal only with our own legislation,� she said.

Questionable marketing
With so much activity in the real-estate sector, Lower Mainlanders are inundated with marketing materials from brokerages and agents competing for a piece of the action. It is the familiar sign of a robust market and the result is a barrage of flyers, websites, newspaper and radio ads, billboards and door-knocking blitzes � all encouraging property owners to sell their own house or buy someone else�s.

While the vast majority of marketing techniques are harmless and legitimate efforts to drum up business, many of them contain dubious or misleading claims that raise questions about the integrity of a regulated profession that facilitates hundreds of millions of dollars in transactions per year � some of them involving foreign buyers whose primary exposure to properties is through online marketing information, such as websites.

The Globe and Mail reviewed dozens of marketing materials in the Lower Mainland, primarily websites and print advertisements, and spoke with several people in the industry who identified brokerages and agents with a reputation for questionable claims. The search was illuminating, but by no means exhaustive. In most cases, it was impossible to determine what was human error or an attempt to deceive.

In one typical example, an agent prominently displayed pictures of a palatial $17.8-million home on his personal Chinese-language website. The address listed for the property was on Drummond Drive, in Vancouver�s west end. The Globe visited the address and observed an older, smaller house than the one pictured. On a different website, which featured listings from many agents, the listing showed the same house observed by The Globe. The agent, Wayne Du of Broadway Amex Realty, did not respond to requests for comment, but the misleading listing on his personal site disappeared soon after he was contacted.

The home located at the address listed in the ad for a Drummond Drive house. Ben Nelms/For The Globe and Mail
Another advertisement, in a magazine, promised investors they could make a million dollars in a year by buying Vancouver property � a reasonable claim by some metrics. The advertisement, promoting agent Roy Yang from Royal Pacific Realty, featured four addresses with sale prices from 2014 and 2015. According to the ad, each had increased in value by a million dollars or more in a year.

Property sales data showing all transactions on the properties in question, however, suggest both prices and profits were exaggerated by several million dollars. The Globe attempted to ask Mr. Yang about the discrepancies, but he did not respond to requests for comment.

Other marketing techniques are so brazen they border on baffling.

One Richmond property owner described waking up to a for-sale sign spiked into her front lawn. �I thought, maybe this is a mistake. Somebody put a sign on the wrong property,� Came Fong Tham, who is also a real estate agent, told The Globe. �So, I called the New Coast agent and said: �Hey, you have a sign on my lawn!� And she said: �Are you interested in selling? I have clients for you.� She didn�t apologize that this was the wrong address or anything.� The managing broker of New Coast, Josh Rosenberg, told The Globe �this was not intended to slight anyone. � When the owner called the agent, they removed it right away.�

Former Realtor�s assistant Lynn Yang is pictured in Vancouver, British Columbia on January 6, 2016. Ben Nelms/For The Globe and Mail
Lynn Yang, a former sales assistant at New Coast Realty, said she was familiar with the technique: Staff would blitz a neighbourhood with signs overnight to give the impression of activity and stir up interest from potential sellers. She said the end goal of all the advertising and promotion is to list or acquire as many properties as possible, then sell to foreign investors who will pay a premium. �I love to see people who are getting rich, but not this way,� Ms. Yang said.

Another questionable marketing technique involved agents posing as private buyers in advertisements intended to entice homeowners to sell. In Vancouver, where speculation has led to a backlash, some homeowners are reluctant to sell to investors and agents, and will often hold out for a buyer who is more likely to make the house a home.

Examples of these �average buyer� advertisements abound, in online classifieds throughout the Vancouver area. �We�ve sold our house so looking for an older house/lot in Vancouver west. Our price range is from 2.5 to 3 mil; depending on the size and the area,� said one recent ad on Craigslist, the classified website.

The phone number in the advertisement belonged to a real-estate agent and was found on several other websites advertising agents.

The Real Estate Council of B.C. said its members routinely complain about inaccuracies in competitors� ads, but agents are rarely disciplined. Ms. Coleman said the council can deal with these types of complaints quickly: �By picking up the phone and saying, �Take it down � and advise us when you have taken it down.�� She said it�s frustrating for the self-governing council when people see possible misconduct by agents, but don�t file complaints.

�We would appreciate knowing,� Ms. Coleman said, �so we can take matters up with our licensees.�

I hate what this place has become.

# ? Feb 15, 2016 06:51

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