Please come with any questions you may have. In the meantime you can take a virtual tour of this Blueridge Property for sale.

As always please do not hesitate to give me a call at 604-376-7653 if I can answer any questions before the open house, or if you would like to book a private showing.

Patricia Houlihan
Macdonald Realty Ltd.

Fabulous family location! One block to swimming, ice skating, and community centre activities! Great child friendly yard and well laid out 4 bedroom home with suite (could be recroom) interior features stainless steel appliances, hardwood floors, and wood burning fireplace....All a short trip to Deep Cove beaches or Mount Seymour Skiing and only minutes from Downtown. A great time to buy in this sought after neighbourhood! First showing at the open house: Sunday, August 1st 2:00-3:30pm.

 
Canada's central bank issues gloomy outlook as it raises trend-setting rate by quarter point

By Julian Beltrame, The Canadian Press

OTTAWA - The Bank of Canada has hiked its trendsetting interest rate a quarter point to 0.75 per cent, while issuing a more gloomy outlook for the economy and raising questions about where rates are headed next.

The second rate increase in as many months had been widely predicted by economists and markets, given Canada's strong first quarter advance and recent job creation record.

The move will likely have an impact on variable mortgages as the big commercial banks usually adjust their prime rates shortly after the Bank of Canada adjusts its key lending rates.

The central bank's move will raise some eye-brows among so-called bearish economists who had urged governor Mark Carney to keep interest rates steady if he believed the recovery was slowing.

They argued that raising rates at this time will only weaken growth by discouraging consumer spending and business investment, and adding upward pressure on the loonie to the detriment of manufacturers and exports.

In a statement accompanying the announcement, the central bank's governing council made clear that they did believe the economy's growth was slowing.

The council said growth will be two-tenths of a point lower both this year and next - at 3.5 per cent and 2.9 per cent respectively - than it had thought in April.

And it said rather than returning to full capacity in the spring of 2011, the economy won't be up to speed until the end of 2011, two full quarters later.

"This revision reflects a slightly weaker profile for global economic growth and more modest consumption in Canada," the bank said.

It also noted that housing activity has declined "markedly," and that while employment growth has resumed, "business investment appears to be held back by global uncertainties and has yet to recover from its sharp contraction during the recession."

The bank said economic activity in Canada was still being led by government and consumer spending.

As for the global economy, the bank said there was still much to be concerned about.

The recovery was proceeding but was not yet self-sustaining. The debt overhang on governments, banks and households, it said, will temper the pace of growth.

And while the policy response has reduced some of the risk stemming from Europe's sovereign debt crisis, that too will have an impact on the pace of global growth going forward. Meanwhile, the United States is seeing private demand pick up, but in an uneven way, it said.

Given the "considerable uncertainty ... any further reduction of monetary stimulus would have to be weighed carefully against domestic and global economic developments," the bank added.

The next scheduled interest rate announcement is Sept. 8.

The central bank's governing council did not expand on its reasoning for the rate hike other than to say it is consistent with achieving its two per cent inflation target, and noting that at 0.75 per cent, it considers monetary policy to be considerably stimulative.

It said inflation, the key responsibility for the central bank, is broadly in line with what it had expected and is expected to remain near the two per cent target throughout the next two and a half years.

Although growth will be slower in the next two years, the bank did lift its projection for 2012 to 2.2 per cent from the 1.9 per cent it had earlier forecast.

If you have any questions about how to make this market work for you, please feel free to call or email me.

Patricia
(604)376-7653
phoulihan@vancouverviews.ca

View this recently sold Property or see all my home sales

Harmonized Sales Tax (HST)’s effect on real estate prices in BC:

New Construction

All new residential construction will now be taxable at the 12% rate rather than the previous 5%. To offset some of this, the government has introduced a New Housing Rebate which will significantly reduce the burden of the additional tax up to a house value of $525,000. For new construction valued at over $525,000, the purchaser will receive a flat rebate of $26,250, meaning the increased burden of this tax will only affect those purchasing a new home over $525,000.

Resale

The HST should have little to no effect on the resale market as 'used' homes are not subject to GST and will not be subject to HST. Instead, the government has a Property Transfer Tax, which will remain the same: 1% on the first $200,000; 2% on the balance.

If you have any question regarding the current real estate market, please contact me by phone or email.


Patricia
(604)376-7653
phoulihan@vancouverviews.ca

View this recently sold Condo or see all my home sales

View this recently sold Property or see all my home sales

Please come with any questions you may have. In the meantime you can take a virtual tour of this West End Condo for sale.

As always please do not hesitate to give me a call at 604-376-7653 if I can answer any questions before the open house, or if you would like to book a private showing.

Patricia Houlihan
Macdonald Realty Ltd.

View this recently sold Property or see all my home sales

View this recently sold Property or see all my home sales

View this recently sold Property or see all my home sales

View this recently sold Property or see all my home sales

Fabulous West End location! 2 bedroom, 2 bath with large private outdoor space. Skylight and lots of windows. Walk to some of Vancouver's best shops and restaurants and of course Stanley Park! 1st showing at the Open House: Sunday June 27th, 2:00-3:30PM.

View this recently sold Property or see all my home sales

Please come with any questions you may have. In the meantime you can take a virtual tour of this Kitsilano Condo for sale.

As always please do not hesitate to give me a call at 604-376-7653 if I can answer any questions before the open house, or if you would like to book a private showing.

Patricia Houlihan
Macdonald Realty Ltd.

Life at the beach! Fabulous one bedroom with open plan, wood burning fireplace & lovely green outlook. Cherry hardwood, nice updates - & walk to everything great about summer in Vancouver - patio restaurants, Kits outdoor pool & the beach. Or stay home & enjoy the rooftop deck! 1st showing at the OPEN HOUSE Sat June 19th, 2:30-4 pm.

June 2010 Market Update

With the HST implementation date quickly approaching, many of you have asked what effect this new value-added tax will have on real estate prices in BC. To answer this question, we must break down its effects into 3 categories: New Construction, Resale, and Fees.

New Construction

This category is the one that is likely to be most influenced by the change from GST to HST. All new residential construction will now be taxable at the 12% rate rather than the previous 5%. To offset some of this, the government has introduced a New Housing Rebate which will significantly reduce the burden of the additional tax up to a house value of $525,000. For new construction valued at over $525,000, the purchaser will receive a flat rebate of $26,250, meaning the increased burden of this tax will only affect those purchasing a new home over $525,000.

But that's not the end of the story. The changeover from the GST & PST to the HST should result in significant real savings to the construction industry as they can now receive government rebates on their inputs. These cost savings will, through time, result in lower overall construction costs, which should help mitigate some of the additional tax burden for those buying new construction valued at over $525,000.

In fact, for those buying property valued at less than $525,000, the overall cost may eventually be lower than before the HST is implemented.

Resale

The HST should have little to no effect on the resale market as'used' homes are not subject to GST and will not be subject to HST. Instead, the government has a Property Transfer Tax, which will remain the same: 1% on the first $200,000; 2% on the balance.

Fees

HST will apply to the fees associated with a transaction and will lead to a slight increase in these fees. That said, many of the fees currently associated with transacting a home already charge both GST & PST so there will be no change; however, the taxes on a realtor's fees will increase by 7%. For a $1,000,000 home, a tax increase of 7% on the amount of real estate commissions means that the typical realtor commission should increase by roughly 0.2065%.

Taking all of this into account, it is clear that the HST will have a negative effect on the market, but only slightly so. Depending on your asset class, you may even end up ahead. And taking into account the fact that the GST was lowered from 7% in 2006 to 5% today, consumers are definitely ahead compared to that time.

To calculate how the HST will affect a typical new house price, please visit macrealty.com to use the HST calculator. Remember though, there are many subtleties to the HST laws and its associated transition rules. An accountant will likely be needed to answer these more detailed questions.