The week of March 16, 2020 will be forever remembered by all Canadians. For many of us, whatever Spring Break trip planned along with everything else entertainment was cancelled that week.
Vancouver Real Estate Investments – Personal or Corporate Ownership?
Difference Between Real Estate Development and Real Estate Investment
There is much confusion on the tax efficient way to hold real estate. The confusion is because taxpayers confuse real estate development with real estate investment. If a taxpayer is planning to buy a piece of land and build a new house or substantially renovate an existing house, this is real estate development, NOT real estate “investment”. The distinction is very important because the tax treatment of the ... Read MoreTime to Reconsider Remuneration Method for CCPC Shareholders
During the summer of 2017, CCPC shareholders and tax advisors across Canada were surprised with by the announcement of new tax rules and restrictions that were being planned by the Minister of Finance. Basically, Ottawa felt that the existing rules at the time were too generous for the CCPC shareholders and intended to scale the “tax perks” down considerably. Almost two years later and with much drama during the interim, the new tax regime is now in place and time will tell how much extra ... Read More
A Liquidity Crunch in Vancouver
Just two years back, when buying condo presales was the rage of investing free cash in Vancouver, I wrote a short blog cautioning investors to begin preparation years ahead for the closing date of the deal. When the condo completes, full payment of the balance on the condo is required to close the deal; hence qualifying for the mortgage at that future time required some income reporting planning. Back then, waiting for construction completion date to close the deal was not necessarily part ... Read More
Non-Canadian Resident and Collecting Rental Income in Vancouver
Non-Canadian residents who own Canadian real estate and collecting rental income have two ways to deal with the Canadian tax liability.
The first method is remit to the CRA, 25% tax on the gross rent collected. This 25% is due to the CRA on the 15th of the following month the rental income was credited to the non-Canadian resident. This tax is considered the final tax liability on the rental income and the non-Canadian resident has no further obligation. However, the non-resident ... Read MoreDeath of a Taxpayer – A To Do List
Death of a family member is one of the most stressful events in life. To compound the grief, there are final tax matters to deal with either by April 30th of the following year or 6 months after the date of death.
What To Do Upon The Death of a Taxpayer?
Upon the death of a taxpayer, at a minimum, there is a final return (“terminal return”) to be filed with the CRA and three optional returns to be filed if desired. In addition, a trust return to report income received after death is ... Read MoreVancouver Sale of Rental Property and the Principal Residence Exemption
While at dinner recently, a friend of mine, Carla, informed me that she sold her rental property and was curious about the amount of tax that she would owe on the gain. Upon further questioning, I uncovered that, in the past, my friend had lived in this rental property (a condo) for many years. She purchased a second condo a few years back and moved into it. She had then rented out the first condo—the one she just sold. From her line of questioning, I realized that, other than the tax ... Read More
Moving Abroad Part Two
Canadians moving abroad have the option to either continue maintaining their residential ties to Canada or sever them (or most of them) completely. By continuing ties, the obligation to pay Canadian taxes will continue. Similarly, if a Canadian plans to not pay taxes on income earned outside of Canada, they must sever ties with Canada so that they’re no longer considered a Canadian “resident” for taxation purposes.
When Cutting Ties
If a Canadian chooses to sever ties, steps must be ... Read MoreMoving Abroad?
When a Canadian is deciding if they should work abroad for a few years, thought should be given to whether or not they want to continue holding ties to Canada and pay Canadian taxes on worldwide income or sever most of their ties with Canada so that their obligations to pay Canadian taxes are limited only to income earned from Canadian sources. Many taxpayers automatically assume that taxes will be lower if ties to Canada are severed. Although this might be correct, taxpayers should pay close ... Read More
