HST Difficulties-Reators as Advocates
FVREB appears before BC government pre-budget committee
On October 16, Christine Caldwell, FVREB's Director & Chair, Government Relations, and Robert Laing, BCREA's Chief Executive Officer, made a joint presentation to the BC government's Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services when they held a pre-budget hearing in Surrey.
In response to the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) announcement earlier this year, we asked the government to:
recognize the extreme differences in home prices across BC by implementing regional rebate thresholds for new housing
reinstate a rebate or tax credit for the HST on condos that leak due to building envelope failure
provide input tax credits for landlords
extend the HST rebate or tax credit on all energy-efficient products that are currently exempt from the PST
implement a three-year phase-out of the Property Transfer Tax to restore fairness for homebuyers who already bear a heavy tax burden
You can provide input to the BC government too! In fact, the Government Relations committee encourages all members to participate in the pre-budget consultation process every year, sharing individual views and supporting the profession's recommendations.
Send your MLA a letter about the HST
BCREA reports that as of October 7, almost 6,500 letters have been distributed to local government officials.