Should foreign home buyers pay more in Toronto too?
Below is a balanced and insightful presentation of ideas from TREB to our mayor that could help alleviate the current shortage of affordable homes in Toronto and in the GTA. There are several options that should be considered before applying this draconian (and inevitably non-productive) approach of taxing foreign home buyers….unless, of course, you think a simple cash grab will cure our housing ills. Toronto has a net population growth through immigration every year. This shortage problem will not go away on its own.
And there are TWO sides to this coin; buying a home is one, and the other is selling a home. Both sides need to be addressed in order to bring supply up to current levels of demand in this city. How do we motivate sellers to put more product on the market? The city has to have some viable options for those sellers’ next home. Where the more “seasoned” sellers are concerned, who would like to sell their large family homes, they need access to more modern bungalows OR spacious condos that have outdoor spaces to replace the gardens they are used to enjoying, and they need storage and space for their “stuff”. Though we all need to deal with the ‘urge to purge’ as we smart-size, the average size of condos is requiring people to give up so much of their furniture and art…so few condos even have wall space for photos, much less paintings and mirrors.
Conclusions about whether this foreign home buyers’ tax is working in Vancouver are premature at best. August is always a slow month both in sales and in average sale price, because the luxury homes are “parked” in the summer due to luxury buyers being on vacation and doing what the wealthy do…travelling, cottaging etc etc.
Some of the ideas put forth in this letter to the mayor from TREB include:
*Reassess our current growth plans and Greenbelt policies
*loosen restrictions on developable land to allow for more housing alternatives
*Reform barriers to purchasing for buyers and especially for FIRST TIME BUYERS
*Ensure proper policies of supply of diverse housing alternatives are being enforced.
Take a quick read of Dear Mr. Tory below and tell me what YOU think!
If you (or someone you know), are looking for a Realtor who cares MORE about focusing on you, your concerns, goals and the successful purchase or sale of YOUR unique home, than they care about their volume of transactions and awards, please let me know the best way for me to connect, as I would love to offer my highly personal service. Contrary to that old expression, not only IS this business, but it IS personal! And, please, I encourage you to ask me any questions you may have about this post. I value your input and appreciate the time you took to read it.