Recently, I came across this interesting article. As cities struggle to address the housing affordability crisis in Vancouver and the surrounding area. “The city of Vancouver is raising their Empty Homes Tax (EHT) in each of the next three years; it will rise from the current 1.0% to 1.25% in 2020 with provision for further 0.25 percentage point increases in 2021 and 2022.”
As governments struggle to make housing more affordable in the lower mainland the message from the City of Vancouver is clear. Pay more for carrying an investment or place it in to the rental pool to address the high demand for rental units.
Like any regulation, this tax will bring more rental units into the market place as condo owners will not want to incur higher costs on a non-generating asset. The downside for the landlord is they will need to be more involved in the management of the strata’s common property and bylaws.
Good property management companies can help, but that does increase the overall investment cost. They do a great job obtaining market rents, and manage the property in line with the BC Strata act that use a follow the Strata Act and use Depreciation Reports to protect your property’s value into the future. Ultimately there will be more work and cost to investing in the condo market in Vancouver.
Read more about the property tax increase at Canadian Real Estate Wealth.
