Since the announcement of the budget yesterday, there has been quite a bit of excitement about this new $10,000 First-Time New Home Buyer's Bonus. And of course, as with most things we've seen that are HST related, quite a bit of confusion also.

Here are some facts about the BC First-Time New Home Buyers' Bonus:

• It is a one-time refundable personal income tax credit worth up to $10,000
  • (The bonus is equal to 5% of the purchase price of the home to a maximum of $10,000)

• Comes into effect Feb 21, 2012 until March 31, 2013 

• To qualify:
  • Purchasers must be first-time home buyers, purchasing the home for use as their primary residence. 
  • The home must be a NEW home that is purchased from the builder/developer, or is owner-built
  • The written agreement to purchase must be enetered into after Feb 21, 2012
  • Construction of the home is complete, or the home is occupied before April 1, 2013

• The amount of the bonus is gradually reduced for high income earners based on net household income. (see link below for full information)

• This bonus is in addition to the existing New Housing Rebates in place.

Fact sheet on the First-Time New Home Buyer's Bonus can be found here >>

Finance Minister Kevin Falcon announced today that British Columbia will be returning to the PST system on April 1, 2013. He also announced the rules for how this transition will apply to the sale of new homes between now and then. 

As part of the transition process, starting April 1 of this year the government will significantly increase the threshold for its HST New Housing Rebate program. This means homes up to $850,000 will now be subject to the rebate. This is a signifcant increase from the former threshold of $525,000.

The government will ablso be introducing a rebate for new second and recreational homes costing up to $850,000. 

More information can be found at:

Today's  HST Transition Rules announcement  
Vancouver Sun - HST Transition Rules For New Homes

Complete information on the re-introduction of PST
PST in BC website- New Home Purchases

Burnaby is about to see a new addition to its skyline. Towering 511' high Bosa's latest project, titled Sovereign, is set to be Burnaby's tallest building. Located across the street from Metrotown, the 45 storey highrise is expected to complete 2014. Sales are set to start on Feb 19th, 2011

LOCATION | Kingsway and Willingdon, Burnaby

PROJECT SIZE | 45 storeys, 202 Units

DEVELOPER | Bosa Properties.

ARCHITECT | Chris Dikeakos Architects Inc.

OCCUPANCY | Estimated 2014

NOTES ABOUT SOVEREIGN |

• The first 19 floors will be a hotel with its own separate entrance and elevators (the hotel chain has yet to be announced), so the residences start on the 20th floor. Every unit is said to come with spectacular views.
• Amenities will include: pool, lounge, gym, rooftop garden and concierge
• All units come with one parking and one locker the Estate Suites & Penthouses will have 2. Additional parking can be purchase from the developer.

For more information and pricing for Sovereign click here>>

Thinking of buying a new home and wondering how much HST will really cost you?

* First of all it’s important to clarify that HST is only applicable on the sale of newly constructed (or substantially renovated) homes. It is not added to the price of resale homes. For more information on how HST affects homebuyers click here.

Sales of newly constructed or substantially renovated homes are now subject to an HST tax of 12% on the purchase price. Fortunately there is some relief to help offset this tax from both the Federal and Provincial levels.

If you are buying a newly constructed home and plan to use it as your primary residence, you may qualify for two rebates: the BC New Housing Rebate and the Federal GST/HST New Housing Rebate.

WHAT IS THE BC NEW HOUSING REBATE?

The BC New Housing Rebate is a rebate of 71.43% of the provincial component of the HST paid (7% - formerly known as PST), up to a maximum of $26,250. The rebate maxes out at a purchase price of $525,000 and then stays flat at $26,250 for properties above that threshold. 

WHAT IS THE FEDERAL GST/HST NEW HOUSING REBATE?

The Federal New Housing Rebate is a rebate applied to the federal component of the HST paid (5%- formerly known as GST). The rebate reduces the federal part of the HST paid from 5% to approximately 3.5% for homes valued at $350,000 or less. The rebate is gradually reduced for homes valued from $350,000 to the maximum value of $450,000.

SO HOW MUCH WILL HST COST ME AS A BUYER?

As you can see calculating this net HST payable on new homes can be a bit of a pain for buyers (I know it has been for me!). 

Thankfully I recently came across this online calculator put out by the British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) which helps you figure out exactly how much tax you’ll pay net of rebates. See for yourself, click the link below: 

SHELTER TAX CALCULATOR FOR BC

** You’ll see that this calculator accounts for HST, as well as Property Transfer Tax (PTT) which is 1% on the first $200,000 and 2% on the remainder of the purchase price. First Time Homebuyers buying a home under $425,000 are exempt from this PPT. (A partial exemption is available for homes between $425,000-$450,000) 

Housings starts were up in in August reflecting the strong demand from consumers we have seen over the past year. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) recorded 1,488 housing starts in Metro Vancouver during August 2010, bringing the total number of Vancouver CMA housing starts to 9,493 for the year.

“Many centres across the Vancouver CMA have seen a rise in single detached housing starts in response to strong consumer demand for ground oriented housing. Not only are developers building in areas of raw land supply, but also there has been an increase in infill developments in areas such as Vancouver City, Burnaby and Richmond,” said Robyn Adamache, Senior Market Analyst for CMHC. “Multiple family units still dominate new home construction activity, making up more than two-thirds of all housing starts in the CMA,” noted Adamache.

Nationally, the seasonally adjusted annual rate of total housing starts dipped to 183,300 units in August. In British Columbia, August’s seasonally adjusted rate of urban housing starts moved higher to 25,400 units, from 20,100 units in July.

Download the full CMHC August 2010 Housing Starts Press Release>>
 

According to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the single family housing market is performing well and overall new housing construction is in line with key economic indicators.

There were a total of1,173 housing starts for the Vancouver CMA reported in May 2010. Construction of single family detached homes has increased and is now currently above the 10 year historical average, however starts of multi-unit housing are lagging and are currently below their 10 year average. As a result total housing starts year –to-date, currently 5,631, are well below the 10 year average of 6,495.

New construction of multi-unit housing totaled 749 units in May 2010 brining the year-to-date total to 3,702. The majority of this construction is accounted for in the City of Vancouver, where 1,306 multi-unit homes started construction so far this year.

Robyn Adamache of CMHC noted that “Most housing market indicators suggest that the new home construction market is in balanced conditions this year.” This is in line with what we are seeing in resale housing numbers and demographic indicators like population growth and household information.
 

Download the full CMHC May 2010 Housing Starts Press Release>>

Get everything you love about Vancouver for a fraction of the price!

LOCATION | 2300 Kingsway, on the corner of Kingsway and Nanaimo.

PROJECT SIZE |

• 22-storey tower with 197 units
• 8-storey tower with 138 units

UNIT SIZES | 

This project offers a variety of unit-sizes and floor plans ranging from studios (396 sq. ft.) to 2 bedroom + den penthouses (1089 sq. ft).

PRICES |

Starting at $201,000 for units with parking...
 

Read more about 2300 Kingsway >>

Housing starts in Metro Vancouver were strong for April 2010 with 1,260 residential units being built. Single-detached homes accounted for 35% of total starts, just over half of which were in Surrey. Condo apartment starts accounted for 42% of total starts, most of which were located in Surrey, Vancouver City and North Vancouver. Year-to-date, total housing starts are up 94% compared to the same period last year.

Compared to April 2009, total housing starts have increased significantly across the board, in almost every city in the Vancouver CMA with the exception of Langley City which showed zero starts compared to 116 a year ago, and Richmond which had 44 starts compared to 53 in April 2009.

“This year, we are seeing an increase in rental units, some of which are laneway
housing,” noted Robyn Adamache, Senior Market Analyst at CMHC. Year-to-date, rental units as a share of new housing starts in the Vancouver CMA are about 9.3%, compared to just 3.3% a year ago. Laneway housing accounted for only 35 units of the total 415 new rental units being constructed, the majority of which were traditional multiple-unit rental buildings. For more on laneway housing see the City of Vancouver’s Eco-Density Website.

Provincial home starts in urban areas rose to 25,600 units, seasonally adjusted at
annual rates (SAAR) in April, from 22,000 in March. At the national level, total housing
starts reached 201,700 units SAAR in April from 199,200 units the prior month.
 

Download the full CMHC April 2010 Housing Starts Press Release>>

The Cecil is coming down, and new residence are going up...23 storeys up. Welcome 'The Rolston': this ambitious development promises to change the Vancouver skyline, leaving it's own unique mark while preserving the city's heritage.

LOCATION | Granville and Drake, Vancouver. Formerly home to the infamous Cecil strip joint and hotel.

PROJECT SIZE | 23 storeys, 187 Units

UNIT SIZES |

• One Bed 416 sq. ft. – 581 sq. ft.
   
• Two Bed 702 sq. ft. – 889sq. ft.

PRICES |

• One Bed $300,000-$359,000
   
• One Bed with Parking $329,000 - $429,000
   
• Two Bed/One Bath $430,900 -$509,000
   
• Two Bed/Two Bath $499,900 - $649,000

Read more about The Rolston >>