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a modern house subject to the Underused Housing Tax

Understanding the Underused Housing Tax

For years, housing advocates across Canada have argued that property speculation and overseas investment were a major factor driving up home prices. While academics and industry stakeholders have debated the degree to which that is the case, the federal government took action to address the issue earlier this year by introducing the Underused Housing Tax. […]

New mortgage rules bring challenges for first-time home buying entrepreneurs

When the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions’ (OSFI) implemented new rules earlier this year designed largely to cool the red-hot housing markets in Toronto and Vancouver, many economists lauded the move. Indeed, housing affordability has emerged as a major issue in Canada in recent years, particularly in our largest cities. Many homes that […]

Major changes to U.S. rules on sales of U.S. real estate property

On December 18, 2015, the U.S. Congress passed the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (“PATH Act”). President Obama has since signed the PATH Act so it is now enacted law. The PATH Act contains significant reform measures for the rules governing Real Estate Investment Trusts (“REITs”) and non-U.S. investors in U.S. real […]

How real estate deals could trigger serious tax liabilities

Investing in real estate can be a smart move for many entrepreneurs. Over the past decade or more, strategic real estate purchases—particularly on the residential front—have delivered returns on investment that, in some cases, have far exceeded those offered by equities and virtually all fixed-income savings vehicles. In hot markets such as Vancouver, Toronto—and until […]