Vancouver's Real Estate Market

[Acura604]

Originally Posted by headhunt3r

How does that compare to last year? How much of an increase is that?

2020 $4828 before grant
2021 $5280 before grant

[Great68]

Holy shit. I thought my $3200 (before grant) for Saanich was high.

[Hondaracer]

I know this is like budgeting 101 but we’ve started puting money into an account specifically for property taxes, whatever we do per month covers them when they roll around

It softens the blow of having to pay the lump sum when it shows up

[PeanutButter]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

I know this is like budgeting 101 but we’ve started puting money into an account specifically for property taxes, whatever we do per month covers them when they roll around

It softens the blow of having to pay the lump sum when it shows up

I don't know the stats, but I would say budgeting is not very common place.

I live pay-cheque to pay-cheque, in the sense that whenever I get paid, the entire amount is allocated to various accounts.

50% Joint
15% Personal savings
15% Investments
10% Emergency fund
10% Entertainment/vacation fund

What do you couples do? Do you pay expenses separately, do you put all the money into one joint account, do you go 50/50 like we do? Just curious

[Hondaracer]

All into one of account, everything gets put on one card essentially for us.

Then we contribute to investments in the way which bests suits our tax purposes ie. spousal RRSP’s.

Wife likes to actually plan and make accounts for vacations etc. Where as I’m kinda more like Fuck it, figure it out when it comes lol..

[quasi]

Originally Posted by Hondaracer

I know this is like budgeting 101 but we’ve started puting money into an account specifically for property taxes, whatever we do per month covers them when they roll around

It softens the blow of having to pay the lump sum when it shows up

This is what we do but I'm an idiot because I always use the previous year to determine the amount I'm putting away monthly and end up short because the following year is always more than the year prior.

Originally Posted by PeanutButter

I don't know the stats, but I would say budgeting is not very common place.

I live pay-cheque to pay-cheque, in the sense that whenever I get paid, the entire amount is allocated to various accounts.

50% Joint
15% Personal savings
15% Investments
10% Emergency fund
10% Entertainment/vacation fund

What do you couples do? Do you pay expenses separately, do you put all the money into one joint account, do you go 50/50 like we do? Just curious

I put about 65% of my paycheck in our joint account my wife does well I'm not sure what percentage she puts in but I know it's a lot less than me but to be fair she makes a lot less.

From our joint account all the bills, mortgage, groceries, utilities, taxes, house insurance ect are paid by diverting money to different accounts.

The rest of my money I do with what I want, pay for my truck insurance, investments, entertainment, savings, vacations whatever.

If we go out for dinner I usually pay, if my son needs clothes I usually pay, if we're going on a family vacation I pay for all of it, if something breaks around the house like last month when we needed new washer dryer, again I pay.

This has worked for us for over 20 years, if I want to go to Vegas with my friends or buy a motorcycle I use my money and it creates no issues between us.

[Tapioca]

All of our income goes into one account and all of our household expenses and pre-authorized debits to investment accounts come from that account. We use one credit card account for all household expenses so we can maximize our rewards.

Our budget also includes a modest amount for personal spending. We maintain our own credit cards for personal expenses and expect that each month, we will make various payments to those cards.

It's worked for almost ten years.

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by Acura604

OUCH...who got their property taxes notice recently? (2021).

$5281. before grant. blech....

At that price, wouldn't you not qualify for grants anyways?

[Tapioca]

Originally Posted by EvoFire

At that price, wouldn't you not qualify for grants anyways?

Property taxes are significantly higher in municipalities that are not Vancouver, so it's not surprising to see a bill in that range for a typical detached home in the suburbs.

The threshold for the homeowner grant is now $1,625,000.

[donk.]

Property taxes are pocket change in comparison on your yearly ROI on the property

Pomo 2100$ before grant, 700sqft condo, value up 40k from 2020 (asses)

Vanc 950$ before grant, 500sqft condo, value up 20k from 2020 (asses)

[Eff-1]

Some cities include utilities with property taxes and some separate it out. For example, we pay our utilities in Feb, as opposed to Vancouver bills utilities together with property tax in July.

[SumAznGuy]

Now that it's been a few years since the debate about rent vs own.
How does everyone feel about that topic? Too bad 4444 isn't on RS anymore. I remember he was really pro-renting.

[Acura604]

Originally Posted by EvoFire

At that price, wouldn't you not qualify for grants anyways?

yes...a mere $570 grant I do qualify for.

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by Acura604

yes...a mere $570 grant I do qualify for.

Our new place doesn't qualify for grants, and our property tax total is just over 7k a year.

[quasi]

Originally Posted by EvoFire

Our new place doesn't qualify for grants, and our property tax total is just over 7k a year.

It's most likely because your property is probably worth more than 1.739m.

The grant threshold for 2021 is $1,625,000. You may be able to claim the full regular grant amount if your property has an assessed or partitioned value of $1,625,000 or less.

If you meet all requirements but your property’s assessed or partitioned value is over $1,625,000, you may qualify for a grant at a reduced amount.

The grant is reduced by $5 for each $1,000 of assessed value over $1,625,000. This means properties assessed up to $1,739,000 ($1,779,000 in a northern and rural area) can receive a partial regular grant. Properties assessed higher than $1,739,000 ($1,779,000 in a northern and rural area), are not eligible for a home owner grant.

[EvoFire]

Originally Posted by quasi

It's most likely because your property is probably worth more than 1.739m.

Oh yeah I know that, but judging from that, I was guessing that at 5281/year probably puts them at or over the threshold for grants as well.

[quasi]

Originally Posted by EvoFire

Oh yeah I know that, but judging from that, I was guessing that at 5281/year probably puts them at or over the threshold for grants as well.

Our property tax in the lower mainland isn't all that terrible compared to some places. My parents is close to 10k in bum fuck Saskatchewan probably due to the size of the town they live in, there house/property is probably under a million.

[supafamous]

Originally Posted by PeanutButter

What do you couples do? Do you pay expenses separately, do you put all the money into one joint account, do you go 50/50 like we do? Just curious

Everything goes into 1 account and then stuff is pulled away into savings accounts for stuff like property taxes, vacations, etc. She used to have a separate savings account but now sees there's no point to it - we just spend out of our checking account.

I'm always puzzled by couples who don't merge their finances especially if one makes more than the other. Didn't you marry everything about that person? Does one stay in a nicer hotel room on vacations and fly in business class while the other slums it in economy?

[supafamous]

Originally Posted by quasi

Our property tax in the lower mainland isn't all that terrible compared to some places. My parents is close to 10k in bum fuck Saskatchewan probably due to the size of the town they live in, there house/property is probably under a million.

This. Property taxes, especially in Vancouver, are quite low for residential land. The city has always charged commercial properties at a much higher rate. Considering the value of residential land the rate is remarkably low.

[Matsuda]

Originally Posted by headhunt3r

How does that compare to last year? How much of an increase is that?

ours was around $5k before. We tore down and rebuilt our house from scratch in 2020 so everything went up

[chinook79]

is it normal for a previous owner to leave home messy? I've bought several homes in the past, mostly new, and never had such experience. I even accommodated seller's request of letting them stay 5 more days after closing date and now I see disgusting oven that seems never have been cleaned for years if ever, smelly washer/dryer, dog hairball on wall, tons of unfilled holes on wall from nails, etc..
washer seems to be half broken and may need replacement and I would probably want to replace that filthy oven as well. To top it off, they left junks in the storage room too. Not impressed at all, and lesson learned, never need to be nice to someone or they'll just take advantage of you...

[JDMDreams]

I've been lucky but sadly my friend recently bought one and it was pretty bad, stains scratches everywhere. I guess it's due to the hot market. Also I guess if you went to normal open houses you can spend more time to see how the place was kept. That's kinda hard now due to current markets and coronas. You're lucky if your offer gets considered.

[VR6GTI]

I don’t think I’ve ever filled any holes from pictures etc when I moved out. Yes I’ve cleaned throughly and left it in the best condition I can though
My realtor has said the market has completely cooled in most places no more crazy offers. Houses that expected lots of offers have none etc. Should be interesting.

[JDMDreams]

I think it's the June 1st rules kicking in

[quasi]

I've only moved a few times but I fill the holes and touch-up, have the carpets cleaned and deep clean the entire house before leaving it for the new owners. I hire cleaners to make sure all the baseboards are done, walls are wiped, you should leave it clean for the next person.