British Columbia Archives - Synergy Mortgage

03Mar

B.C. to extend rent freeze to end of 2021, increase protections against ‘renovictions’

[CBC - March 1, 2021] NDP government says it's meeting recommendations from a 2018 task force on rental issues The British Columbia government says it will introduce legislative changes to extend a rent freeze through to the end of this year to stop illegal "renovictions" and improve the dispute resolution process for tenants and landlords. The province has already introduced and extended a rent freeze during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it says in a news release Monday that new legislative changes will keep it in [...]

British Columbia, Economic Outlook, Vancouver Real Estate

24Feb

Time to complete your speculation and vacancy tax declaration

[Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver - February 22, 2021] Residential property owners in communities where the speculation and vacancy tax (SVT) applies will soon receive their declaration package and can complete it online at: https://gov.bc.ca/spectax All owners on the title, including spouses and relatives, must complete a declaration to claim an exemption or determine eligibility for a tax credit. Corporations must also complete a declaration for all residential properties in taxable regions. The deadline to complete a declaration is March 31. Property owners needing help can: phone 833-554-2323 (toll-free in Canada and [...]

British Columbia, Vancouver Real Estate

18Feb

Why detached home prices in Greater Vancouver have been rising, while condo prices have stayed static

[CBC - February 3, 2021] Single-family home prices increasing at level not seen since mid-2010s COVID-19 doesn't affect all people equally — and it doesn't affect the housing market equally either. The average selling price of a detached home in Greater Vancouver rose for the sixth straight month in January, the first time that had happened since 2013. At $1.83 million it's the third highest monthly figure in the history of the Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board. To the east, the Fraser Valley [...]

British Columbia, COVID-19, Vancouver Real Estate

18Feb

Bidding wars are back: Record-setting January for Fraser Valley home sales

[CTV News - February 2, 2021] VANCOUVER -- Winter is normally a slow season for real estate, but there were more homes sold in the Fraser Valley real estate region last month than any previous January. Total sales of 1,718 across all residential property types is 76 per cent higher than January 2020 and 72 per cent above the 10-year average for the month. That’s a new record for January sales in the Fraser Valley. The biggest surge was in detached [...]

British Columbia, Vancouver Real Estate

16Jan

LAND OWNER TRANSPARENCY REGISTRY (LOTR)

[Land Owner Transparency Registry - January 15, 2021] B.C. Real Estate Beneficial Ownership Disclosure Law Takes Effect November 30, 2020 The Land Title and Survey Authority of British Columbia (LTSA) operates the Land Owner Transparency Registry (LOTR), a first-of-its- kind registry to improve transparency of land ownership in BC. What is LOTR? A searchable registry that maintains information about “interest holders” under the Land Owner Transparency Act. These are individuals who do not have direct ownership of land but are considered to have [...]

British Columbia, Mortgage Education Centre

06Jan

Suburb bidding wars spike as Metro Vancouver home sales resilient during pandemic: realtors

[News 1130 - January 5, 2021] VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — Home sales in the suburbs are booming, with bidding wars now a regular occurrence, realtors say, while recent data shows how resilient Metro Vancouver property sales have been through the pandemic. According to the 2020 numbers, the sales were 2.8 per cent below the 10-year average for the Vancouver area. However, the early months of the pandemic saw sales all but stop. This comes despite sales all but stopping in the [...]

British Columbia, Vancouver Real Estate

05Jan

News Modest increase in most B.C. properties, with shift to larger homes: BC Assessment

[CTV - January 4, 2021] VANCOUVER -- Property owners across B.C. can expect a modest increase to their homes’ assessed value this month, bucking concerns of a COVID-related collapse, with the lion’s share of the growth being felt in already high-priced single family homes. While low interest rates have likely kept money cheap and prices high, the pandemic may be partly to blame for the shift to larger properties, with buyers looking for bigger spaces to accommodate all the things many [...]

British Columbia, Vancouver Real Estate

16Dec

Prices surge for B.C. recreational properties as people ‘re-evaluate their lifestyle’

[Vancouver Sun - December 8, 2020] There is a surge in interest and prices for recreational properties across B.C., especially Whistler, Kimberley and Cranbrook. Vancouver landscape architect Paul Sangha has long created gorgeous gardens and outdoor spaces for homes in the city, but this year, he is juggling a dramatic switch for his services in far-flung, recreational properties. It’s not just at Whistler, he said. “That, we would traditionally get. But now it’s jumped to Bowen Island and Pemberton, and then also [...]

British Columbia, Canada, Recreational Properties, Remodel + Renovation

09Dec

Vancouver real estate: 2020 sales so far surpass whole of 2018, 2019, and December has just started

[Georgia Straight - December 8, 2020] A new market report by Vancouver-based Dexter Realty shows that 2020 will finish with a bang. Residential and land sales so far this year in the city of Vancouver exceed annual numbers for 2018 and 2019. These are numbers from January to November 2020, and sales in December have yet to be counted. The same picture is mirrored on a regional scale across areas covered by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV). This means that any [...]

British Columbia, Vancouver Real Estate

02Dec

Change made to insurance for B.C. condo owners amid rising premiums

[CTV - December 1, 2020] VICTORIA -- Insurance companies in British Columbia have agreed to end a pricing practice that has been identified as one of the key factors in skyrocketing property insurance premiums for condominiums. Earlier this year, the B.C. Financial Services Authority said premiums have gone up by 40 per cent on average for a number of reasons. Finance Minister Selina Robinson says an agreement to end so-called best terms pricing on Jan. 1 is a positive step. Insuring multi-unit properties [...]

British Columbia