| Nov. 25, 2009: | Toronto Developer Acquires Pontiac Silverdome |
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| Nov. 18, 2009: | Investors Dive Back into Commercial Property |
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| Nov. 04, 2009: | Survey Shows Canadian Commercial Real Estate Markets in far Better Shape Than the U.S. |
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| Oct. 23, 2009: | Commercial Real Estate Bounces Back |
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| Sep. 30, 2009: | Canada's tallest office tower gets a $100-million facelift |
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| Sep. 01, 2009: | Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation to open first Murale store in Toronto |
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| Aug. 10, 2009: | Private firm lands Union Station deal |
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| Jul. 16, 2009: | Workplace walls come tumbling down |
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| Jul. 06, 2009: | CBC eyes $125M real estate sell-off |
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| Jun. 19, 2009: | Toronto Real Estate Board: Over 600,000 Square Feet Leased in May |
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| Jun. 05, 2009: | Canadian Office Space Remains One Of The World's Most Expensive |
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| May 20, 2009: | McGuinty Government: New Energy Tax |
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| May 04, 2009: | Fresh Thinking about Commercial Real Estate Part 2 |
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| Apr. 24, 2009: | Shops at Don Mills – Ontario’s first urban village – opens its doors |
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| Apr. 07, 2009: | Lennard Takes Home the Office Deal of the Year REX Award |
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| Mar. 31, 2009: | Fresh Thinking About Commercial Real Estate |
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| Mar. 20, 2009: | In a League of their own |
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| Mar. 09, 2009: | Canadian property markets cushioned for 2009 |
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| Mar. 09, 2009: | Bell Canada buys 750 The Source stores |
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| Feb. 27, 2009: | Commercial Market Better than in 90's |
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| Jan. 23, 2009: | The downturn, then and now |
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| Jan. 16, 2009: | Proposal for prime site spurs controversy |
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| Dec. 16, 2008: | Retailers set to ride out economic downturn |
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| Nov. 25, 2008: | GO Transit offers to buy part of Union Station |
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| Nov. 18, 2008: | Federal government considering sale of Crown assets: Flaherty |
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| Oct. 24, 2008: | Jane Baldwin from Lennard Helps Bring Anthropologie to Toronto |
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| Oct. 09, 2008: | 18 York Street Breaks Ground |
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McGuinty Government: New Energy Tax
May 20, 2009
McGuinty Government Targets Home Sellers with New Energy Tax
Source: TORONTO, May 14 /CNW/
The McGuinty government today gave third and
final reading to Bill 150, the Green Energy Act, which, when implemented, will
impose significant new costs on home sellers in Ontario. The new tax comes in
the form of an energy audit fee that must be paid by home sellers prior to a
single family home being sold.
"Imposing more costs on single family homeowners in a time of recession
is bad economic policy," said Pauline Aunger, President of the Ontario Real
Estate Association (OREA). "The real estate market is one of the main drivers
of Ontario's economy and we're incredulous that the government would choose to
impose new fees when they should be doing everything possible to stimulate a
housing recovery in the province."
The new audit fee is only applicable on single-detached, semi-detached,
houses, townhouses and fourplexes. Owners of high-rise condominiums, and all
other forms of non-residential real estate, are exempt from the energy audit
provision.
"Single family home sellers are being unfairly targeted by home energy
audits," explained Ms. Aunger. "If the benefits of going green are shared by
all Ontarians, then why has the provincial government targeted single family
home sellers to pay the costs?"
This is the third tax aimed specifically at real estate transactions in
the last three years. First, the government of Ontario passed the City of
Toronto Act, which allowed the city to impose the first ever municipal land
transfer tax in Canada. Earlier this spring, the Minister of Finance announced
that the provincial sales tax would be harmonized with the goods and services
tax, resulting in thousands of dollars in increased taxes on resale
transactions and tens of thousands of dollars in additional tax on new homes
in Ontario. Finally, energy audits could cost home sellers additional
thousands in lost equity.
"Dalton McGuinty is using Ontario homeowners as his own ATM," said Ms.
Aunger. "Public policy should promote homeownership - not raise costs for
homebuyers and erode equity of home sellers."
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