Close X
Wednesday, December 4, 2024
ADVT 
National

Vancouver Expects $30 Million In First Year Of Empty Homes Tax

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 07 Nov, 2018 11:46 AM
    VANCOUVER — The City of Vancouver says it has collected $18 million from the first year of its empty homes tax and another $12 million could still flow into its coffers.
     
     
    The city says in a news release that it expects to generate a total of $30 million from the first year of the tax which is applied to vacant residential properties in a bid to ease Vancouver's near-zero vacancy rate.
     
     
    The city says $8 million raised by the tax in 2017 has already been earmarked by council for specific affordable housing initiatives.
     
     
    More details of the first year of the empty homes tax are due to be released Dec. 1 in the city's first annual report on the levy.
     
     
    Owners of residential properties are also being advised they must submit a property status declaration by Feb. 4, 2019, in order to meet the provisions of the tax for 2018.
     
     
    Owners who don't declare that status will be taxed, which amounts to one per cent of a property's assessed value, and owners who miss the due date by even a day will also face a $250 penalty.
     
     
    Mayor Kennedy Stewart says the tax is an important strategy in managing Vancouver's unaffordable housing market.
     
     
    "Housing affordability is the most important issue in our city, and the empty homes tax is helping to free up more potential rental units that should be available as homes for Vancouver residents," Stewart says in the release.
     
     
    The tax does not apply to principal residences, properties rented for at least six months of the year, or properties that are eligible for one of eight exemptions.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Experiencing Different Cultures: Regina Couple Marries 15 Times Around The World

    REGINA — Karl Fix and Sandra Beug have had some interesting experiences marrying each other again and again in different countries around the world.

    Experiencing Different Cultures: Regina Couple Marries 15 Times Around The World

    Earth Samples Show Dust From B.C. Pipeline Blast Not A Health Threat: Enbridge

    VANCOUVER — The company that owns the natural gas pipeline that ruptured and burned one week ago in central British Columbia, says the dust that settled on homes near the blast site does not pose a health threat.

    Earth Samples Show Dust From B.C. Pipeline Blast Not A Health Threat: Enbridge

    Sea Lion Suffering From Gunshot Wounds To The Head Brought To Vancouver Aquarium

    Sea Lion Suffering From Gunshot Wounds To The Head Brought To Vancouver Aquarium
    VANCOUVER — A sea lion suffering from gunshot wounds to the head has been taken to the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Mammal Rescue Centre for treatment.

    Sea Lion Suffering From Gunshot Wounds To The Head Brought To Vancouver Aquarium

    Owner Of Mistakenly Donated Cash Sought By Thrift Store In West Kelowna, B.C.

    Owner Of Mistakenly Donated Cash Sought By Thrift Store In West Kelowna, B.C.
    WEST KELOWNA, B.C. — A charity in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley is trying to reunite some mistakenly donated money with its original owner, and it's not the first time this year that someone has inadvertently contributed cash.

    Owner Of Mistakenly Donated Cash Sought By Thrift Store In West Kelowna, B.C.

    Elderly Pedestrian Dies After Being Hit By Vehicle On Canada Way In Burnaby

    Elderly Pedestrian Dies After Being Hit By Vehicle On Canada Way In Burnaby
    The driver of the vehicle stayed on scene. At this time police are investigating as to whether speed may have been a factor in this collision. The elderly male was not in a marked crosswalk when he was struck. 

    Elderly Pedestrian Dies After Being Hit By Vehicle On Canada Way In Burnaby

    Counsellors In Calgary School To Deal With Girl's Death In Transit Accident

    CALGARY — A school has brought in counsellors to help deal with a six-year-old girl's death in an accident involving a light-rail transit train.

    Counsellors In Calgary School To Deal With Girl's Death In Transit Accident