Why Save?

[seattleflamer]

Originally Posted by THE SCUD

I suggest everyone do as I have and email your MP to get some laws on foreign property ownership. What the yen man explains is litterally all that's

1) keeping vancouver real estate 'bubbly'.

2) stopping honest Canadians (asian, brown, black, yellow, aqua) from owning a reasonably priced home in the lower mainland. Somethnig liek 74% of a Vancouverite's wage goes to living costs. Impossibly dumb.

I fear that once even the offshore asians find Vancouver real estate too high, that they will port that bubblage over to AB.

There are some pretty good sticks on foreign ownership that apply only to non residents like exclusion to property tax exemptions like the Home Owner grants and the property transfer tax when you sell so foreigners are hit in the pocket book rather than artificially affecting supply and demand. Maybe PTT can be increased beyond current rates?

You'd have the entire BC RE industry lobbying heavily against any change since foreign buyers are their bread and butter...and the cities and province love all that revenue via non residents read non voters.

IHMO, Lower Mainland RE is unsustainable at current prices. It is just like the US RE market was in 2005/06, it will come down just a question of how much.

[GP_Matt]

With home ownership levels above 65% in Canada they are really only screwing over the minority of Canadians who don't own their own homes who intend to buy. You never hear someone complain that they received too much money for their home.

[bizaro86]

If you really wanted to discourage foreign ownership you could charge foreigners higher property taxes. Florida does this with the "Homestead exemption" where properties owned by full time Florida residents get a property tax discount.

On the other hand, foreigners buying real estate puts a lot of money into Canadian hands. The sellers get more than they would have, the real estate industry (agents, mortgage providers, renovators, etc) are all better off, and the gov't gets more taxes (withholding tax on foreign owned property).

It might force young people into renting instead of buying, but at current BC prices that might be a blessing for them, not a curse.

[Phanuthier]

Originally Posted by chemgear

^ China has been trying to curb their own (threat of a) bubble for the last few years. Just look at the news articles about those crazy cities that are completely empty.

They have been raising downpayment minimums for second houses and even suspended mortgages for third homes on top of raising interest rates. I think they raised down payment minimums to 60% from what I recall (it's been a while.)

Anyhow, given the restrictions I assume they are looking to put their money down where they can - like Vancouver.

EDIT: This is an older article but here ya go:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-0...ces-climb.html

Great point. I've been (somewhat) passively following how China has been trying to slow their growth to prevent a bubble... as opposed to the USA doing it to themselves over and over and over again... interesting to compare and contrast with the Western world for sure.

[chemgear]

Why save . . . when you can work til you die!

http://business.financialpost.com/20...nt-skyrockets/

While the numbers are not unexpected, they provide statistical confirmation of a trend that has remained largely anecdotal: People are working longer, and for a variety of reasons. Some are forced to work because they haven’t yet built adequate savings for their later years, seeing chunks of it wiped out in the stock market turmoil. Others find they have skills and experience that are in demand as companies struggle to find competent younger workers to fill out their ranks.

[chemgear]

New TD report today:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/stor...hold-debt.html

A new study by TD Bank released Tuesday says seniors are piling up debt at a faster rate than the general population, and that some may find that cuts into their standard of living in retirement.

The bank said typically people ease off on taking on new debt and build up assets in order to have enough income once they leave the workforce