Vancouver's Real Estate Market

[blkgsr]

ya i know i know.....fuck it i'm moving to honduras and never coming back lol

thanks guys....it's helped just typing my thoughts out

i do have the option of keeping the house, renting it out (approx $800+/month "profit" after all the yearly taxes/utilities and insurance is factored in) and cashing in some RRSP's ($15K) to cover some of the traveling costs that's we'll need on top of what we'll save before we go.

[punkwax]

If you decide to keep your home and your mortgage is up, why not borrow a little more against the equity in your home, rather than cash out some RRSP? Sounds like you'll still be in the black from renting..

I am not a financial advisor, but I would definitely discuss this option with the bank as well before deciding.

[UFO]

Originally Posted by blkgsr

for me right now i'm killing myself trying to figure out if i decline and take it off the market and rent it out.....i know after everything this option sounds crazy but i just don't know what the fuck to do

Before you get too far into pulling the plug on your listing, check with your agent. There's a line in the seller's contract that states something along the lines of if you get an offer of your asking price or more, and you decide not to go through with the sale for whatever reason, you still have to pay the agent their commission as agreed to in the listing contract. The subjects and subject removal dates your offer have put in are pretty much standard, and not really grounds to reject the offer on your part

So just double check with your agent first if they are cool with you not going through with the sale without any cost to you.

[blkgsr]

Originally Posted by punkwax

If you decide to keep your home and your mortgage is up, why not borrow a little more against the equity in your home, rather than cash out some RRSP? Sounds like you'll still be in the black from renting..

I am not a financial advisor, but I would definitely discuss this option with the bank as well before deciding.

that's a good idea, i'll look into it...not sure what the long term "cost" would be for say $30K....i guess just the mortgage rate? ie 2.7% for the year? i think i can get a line of credit for less, i'll have to check. it will be a short work year for me (approx 3 months total) so i think the RRSP's might be a better option???



as for the cancellation...$250 to cover fees/photographer and I'm all done.....i was happy it's only that and was expecting much more especially after reading the clause you refered to. we both signed the cancellation form. she knows she'll be my first call when/if i come home to sell and buy another propety

[4444]

Originally Posted by Z3guy

Hey 4444, still waiting for the right fundamentals to kick in? lol!

you are, undeniably, a fucking idiot.

[UFO]

glad that worked out with the cancellation. She could have been a real dick and had every right to pull the contract line on you. But in the end she really didn't have to do a whole lot of work and didn't have much invested into your listing. I could easily see some of the real estate 'sharks' making life difficult for you.

Cashing out RRSP's are rarely a good idea. Depending on how much you cash out, a pretty high % is taken off right off the bat and then whatever you take out is added to your income for the year. An expert may give you the better details. Just play with the numbers and see if it makes sense.

[blkgsr]

ya she handled it really well..

i honestly don't know much about cashing in RRSP's so i will definitely read up on it. i thought it just counted as income for the year...

[SupraMan604]

I would rather borrow against my home than withdraw from RRSP's. As my mortgage advisor said mortgage rates are at historic lows if you are going to borrow might as well borrow now and use your equity. Unless you are buying a new car where you can get 0%/1%/2% financing there is not much better than borrowing from your home. Check out the withholding tax below its not worth it:

•10% on amounts up to $5,000;
•20% on amounts over $5,000 up to including $15,000; and
•30% on amounts over $15,000.

[Z3guy]

Originally Posted by 4444

you are, undeniably, a fucking idiot.

calling people names, wow, you are mature, you are like a little child who can't admit it when he's not right......you comments make me laugh though.....

[waddy41]

It's just withholding though, you'll get it back when you do your taxes early next year.

It depends on your income situation, if you will make very little in 2015 it's more advantageous to take it out now.. you probably have made money on your investments within your rrsp and made a deduction while you were in a higher tax bracket..

[blkgsr]

Originally Posted by SupraMan604

I would rather borrow against my home than withdraw from RRSP's. As my mortgage advisor said mortgage rates are at historic lows if you are going to borrow might as well borrow now and use your equity. Unless you are buying a new car where you can get 0%/1%/2% financing there is not much better than borrowing from your home. Check out the withholding tax below its not worth it:

•10% on amounts up to $5,000;
•20% on amounts over $5,000 up to including $15,000; and
•30% on amounts over $15,000.

just so i understand this right.....say i cash out $4999....i will only get $4499 as 10% will immediately be taken for tax? then at the end of the year when i do my taxes everything will be combines (say like having 2 T4's) then all worked out?

$10,000 becomes $8000 etc etc

thanks

[Tapioca]

If blkgsr doesn't plan to have kids, then the decision is easy. You can live anywhere, provided you have immigration status and work.

If you do plan to have kids, then the decision is tougher because no matter what people say, stability is important.

[blkgsr]

currently plan for the near future (1+ years) no....but my wife (and i guess deep down me too) yes

i put the house back up on craigslist this morning, already had two calls. now i get to be SUPER stringent on who i'm letting live there this time

any recommendations for sites/services i can use to do credit/back ground checks on people??

[Tapioca]

^ If your long-term plan is to raise a family, then it's helpful to have as much stability as possible. But, I do know families who rent long-term too, despite having the means to own. At least you're lucky enough to have choices.

You might think you have a handle on your wife's emotions now, but it's a different ballgame if you're fortunate enough to have a kid or two.

[SupraMan604]

Originally Posted by blkgsr

just so i understand this right.....say i cash out $4999....i will only get $4499 as 10% will immediately be taken for tax? then at the end of the year when i do my taxes everything will be combines (say like having 2 T4's) then all worked out?

$10,000 becomes $8000 etc etc

thanks

Yes you are correct and whatever you take out will be counted as income so when you do your taxes your income will be higher with the amount taken out of your RRSP. As Waddy says if your income is low then it may be okay to take it out but you will need to work out the math/taxes for yourself to know. I would still personally borrow instead as I rather save and invest the RRSP which probably could get me a better return to leverage me borrowing on low interest from my home. If you have the RRSP's in a chequing account with no interest then.....take it out

[blkgsr]

ya i have a small amount that's sitting doing nothing (99% of the rest is in an active account)...this was all last minute RRSP contributions from last year and this year (didn't transfer over last years as i was too lazy to get it done before i went away)

i'm getting the house rented out ASAP before we go so that will help alot with getting some extra cash

[UFO]

semi off topic question, with the transit vote upcoming.

WTF have the city's been doing with the increased property taxes they have collected? Say an average house has increased value 25% over the past 5 years (imaginary numbers), that's a huge increase in property tax revenues to the city for not having to really provide any increase in services (because there aren't more residents). So where the hell is all that money gone? We can say Gregor's bike lanes, but the burbs don't have these bike lanes...

[blkgsr]

coquitlam's new garbage and recycling program is supposed to save the city millions yet i pay more now for the same/less service??

[Mr.HappySilp]

Originally Posted by UFO

semi off topic question, with the transit vote upcoming.

WTF have the city's been doing with the increased property taxes they have collected? Say an average house has increased value 25% over the past 5 years (imaginary numbers), that's a huge increase in property tax revenues to the city for not having to really provide any increase in services (because there aren't more residents). So where the hell is all that money gone? We can say Gregor's bike lanes, but the burbs don't have these bike lanes...

hmm maybe affordable housing, bike lanes, parks, schools, more money in gov's own pocket?

[winson604]

Originally Posted by UFO

semi off topic question, with the transit vote upcoming.

WTF have the city's been doing with the increased property taxes they have collected? Say an average house has increased value 25% over the past 5 years (imaginary numbers), that's a huge increase in property tax revenues to the city for not having to really provide any increase in services (because there aren't more residents). So where the hell is all that money gone? We can say Gregor's bike lanes, but the burbs don't have these bike lanes...

Same can be said for the Province and Feds'

For every $1 the City collects in Property Taxes only about $0.06 goes to the City and the rest gets goes to the Provincial and Federal Government. But yes I know, even with the split the City's biggest revenue is still from taxes.

[iEatClams]

Originally Posted by UFO

semi off topic question, with the transit vote upcoming.

WTF have the city's been doing with the increased property taxes they have collected? Say an average house has increased value 25% over the past 5 years (imaginary numbers), that's a huge increase in property tax revenues to the city for not having to really provide any increase in services (because there aren't more residents). So where the hell is all that money gone? We can say Gregor's bike lanes, but the burbs don't have these bike lanes...

This is a huge misconception. If your property increased by 25%, it does not mean that your taxes go up 25%.


How it works is the city sets a budget, for the city of Vancouver, this has been increasing 2-5% every year since real estate has been going up. They set a mill rate (Tax rate) - about 3.70$ on every $1,000 of value. So if your property is worth $1 million, you pay about $3,700.


Do you think that if prices go down 50% next year, that the city will cut property taxes by 50%? No, they will just increase the TAX RATES by 100% to meet their budgetary requirements.


Depending on how much your property increases in relation to the average property, will determine if your property taxes goes up or down. If everyone is increasing 30%, but you are increasing only 10%, your property taxes may go down from year to year.

Because property values have been increasing since the last decade, the tax rates have been going down every year - use to be above 4%, now its 3.7%.


one of the largest portion of our taxes goes to. .. . police officers and firefighters.

[Gululu]

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[Stormspirit]

New apartment inspection tomorrow. what should I look out for?

[radioman]

Originally Posted by Gululu

Spoiler!

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Is this like the new wheres waldo?

Spoiler!

With the look on his face though he might be lost.

[GLOW]

Originally Posted by Gululu

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everyone is there to play a major role in consolidating resources and driving innovation in the local and international markets.