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VANCOUVER VACANCY TAX — Residents SCRAMBLE to Avoid Massive Tax Bills!

711 views · Published 13 April 2017 · 9:13 · Indexed 17 October 2026

Channel: Mike Martins · 2017 · News & Politics

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“Now it’s just a matter of when. It’s not how, if — will it happen? It’s when now.” — Mike Martins

Hey YouTubers, Mike Martins here.
I’ve got another really important article to add to my ongoing Vancouver Housing Crisis series, and I strongly recommend going back and watching some of my older videos because a lot of the things we’ve been discussing are starting to come into place.
At this point, I don’t think the question is necessarily IF major changes are coming to the housing market anymore. The question is WHEN and exactly how they're going to affect people.
Vancouver's new vacant home tax is creating a huge amount of confusion as property owners scramble to figure out whether they're going to be hit with the tax.
One example in this article is Russell Blackburn, a Canadian citizen who owns a condo in Coal Harbour valued at around $1.6 million. He spends almost six months of the year in Vancouver, but because of his particular living situation and the way the rules work, he's looking at roughly a $16,000 annual vacancy tax.
That's where this gets complicated.
Yes, Vancouver has a serious problem with empty housing. We have tens of thousands of units sitting empty while people who actually live and work here struggle to find affordable places to live.
Something needs to happen.
But should every supposedly "vacant" property be treated exactly the same?
I think the city needs to examine these situations individually. Have people review the documentation, go through a checklist and determine whether somebody legitimately qualifies for an exemption instead of automatically treating every empty property owner as the same situation.
According to the rules being discussed, owners who don't have their unoccupied units rented by July 1, 2017 could face the vacancy tax on their 2018 property tax bill. The tax is equivalent to 1% of the property's assessed value, on top of the regular property taxes.
And Vancouver isn't the only city I'm watching.
Toronto has a massive number of empty properties as well, and I believe we're going to see increasing pressure there to address vacant housing too.
This is a difficult issue because I understand BOTH sides.
We desperately need housing brought back onto the market. At the same time, somebody may have personal belongings, artwork and a lifetime of possessions inside a second residence and simply doesn't want strangers living there.
So where do we draw the line?
Is Vancouver's vacancy tax fair?
Should legitimate part-time residents receive exemptions?
Or if you're not actually living in the property most of the year, should you either rent it out or pay the tax?
Comment below because I really want to hear what you guys think.
Thanks for watching.
— Mike Martins

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