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1. Ask for a copy of the move-out-inspection report in the Contract of Purchase and Sale even if they didn’t fill out a move-in report. The reason for the move-out report is to make sure that when the tenants move out and you take possession of your new home, it is left in the same condition as when you viewed the home earlier in the process which could be a couple of months back. Pictures are worth a thousand words so take pictures whenever possible.
2. Tenants move out on 30^th or 31th of each month. The possession dates should be at least 2 days after the end of the month to ensure tenant have moved out and the home is properly cleaned.
3. Seller can ONLY ask the tenants to vacate property if the buyers (or their immediate family) intend to live in the unit themselves. Ask for the tenant to vacate the property in the Contract of Purchase and Sale.
4. If the buyer does not intend to live in the unit, the unit cannot be rented for 6 months or the tenant that was given notice to vacate can go to the Residential Tenancy Branch and win double of the last month free rent plus the cost of moving.
5. Seller has to give tenant 60-day notice to vacate t0 tenant (if month-to-month) and the last month is rent free. The tenant also has the right to give landloard 10-day quit notice and the landlord has to pay the remaining of the two months’ rent back to tenant.
6. Remove Subjects before 23^rd of each month to give enough  notice for tenant to vacate.
7. Ask for professional cleaning especially the kitchen, bath and carpet in the Contract of Purchase and Sale.
8. Ask if the fixtures belong to the tenants or landlords. If it’s the tenants’ they will take theirs with them. Also take pictures of the appliances and note their model numbers just in case.
9. Request proof of how security and/or pet deposit was handled at completion.
10. Change the locks after purchasing the home. You never know how many people have a copy of the keys.

The BC Real Estate Association just released a report titled “July Home Sales Highest Since 2009.” July 2013 home sales were up 18% as compared to July 2012 and the average residential price in BC was $534,360, up 12.5% from July last year.

Cameron Muir, the Chief Economist of BC Real Estate Association said “After 6 consecutive months of rising consumer demand, it’s now clear that BC housing markets are recovering from tighter lending regulations introduced last year.”

Muir added that the rising home sales are unlikely to cause home prices to increase significantly because there is a healthy pool of home inventory currently available on the market. Many home sellers are waiting for improved market condition before they put their homes up for sale which will then meet the demand of increased buyers.

For the complete report, please click here.

Click on the picture below to see Richmond Real Estate Market Statistics as of July 30, 2013

 

 

During the past 14 days:

Richmond – 320 new listings/173 homes sold

Burnaby – 310 new listings/158 homes sold

New Westminster – 93 new listings/46 homes sold

North & West Vancouver – 342 new listings/138 homes sold

Vancouver – 748 new listings/415 homes sold

Tri-Cities (Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody) – 339 new listings/177 homes sold

N. Delta, Ladner & Tsawwassen – 117 new listings/75 homes sold

Surrey & White Rock – 612 new listings/290 homes sold

 

In the month of May, for Richmond, the sales to active listings ratio for single family homes:

103 home sales/1008 active listings = 10% which indicates a buyer’s market

 

In BC, when a borrower defaults in making the mortgage payments (or even taxes, strata fees), the lender can undergo foreclosure proceedings to sell the property used as security to get their money back. This is spelled out in the mortgage contract the borrower signs when taking out a loan to purchase a property.

The foreclosure process in BC:

1. Demand Letter – the lender’s lawyer sends the demand letter to everyone named on the mortgage including current owners and guarantors to pay out the mortgage or face foreclosure.

2. Petition – the lender’s lawyer files a formal application to the BC Supreme Court to request a judicial action which includes an Order for Sale so the court may order the sale of the mortgaged property.

3. Order Nisi – the lender’s lawyer apply in supreme court chambers for an order nisi which establishes the amount required to redeem the mortgage and the redemption period (usually one day to six months).

4. Certificate of Pending Litigation – is filed in court registry and the Land Title Office. This registration means there is pending litigation against the property.

5. Order for Conduct of Sale – the court instruct that the property be listed for sale usually by the lender’s realtor.

6. Order Made After Application – the order that approves the sale of the property.

So if you see a property listed on the MLS with the seller’s interest being “Court Ordered Sale” you know it is a foreclosure. If you happen to make an offer on a Court Ordered Sale, know that even if your offer is accepted, property inspected and deposit paid, the offer is still subject to court approval.

The court date for such approval is public information. Anyone can show up in court on the specified court date and submit an offer. The Master (not Judge) residing over the court will ask if anyone else would like to bid on the property. Then the Master will read out loud the important information on every offer such as buyer’s name, price, deposit amount, completion/possession dates and whether the proper schedule is attached.

The lender’s lawyer present at court then asks the Master to approve the highest priced offer. The Master approves the sale and the winning bidder is happy. The buyer with the accepted offer may lose the deal if the offer is not the best after bidding. I was at court today. The buyer with the accepted offer lost the deal by a couple of thousand dollars when eight other groups showed up at court to bid on the property. That’s the chance a buyer takes when making an offer on a Court Ordered Sales.

There are currently 192 court ordered sale across Greater Vancouver. For a current list of these foreclosures, please email jenny@ultimatehomeguide.ca with “foreclosures” in the subject line.

 

 

The British Columbia Real Estate Association released the 2013 Second Quarter Housing Forecast today.

According to the press release, home sales are forecast to increase 1.9% during the second quarter of this year and through 2014. Stricter mortgage rules and slower economic growth in BC has kept British Columbia’s home sales low over the past three quarter according to Cameron Muir, BCREA’s Chief Economist.

In addition to sales, home price forecast has been revised from a decline of 1% to remain unchanged before rising again in 2014.

Please click on the link below for the press release “Transition Year Expected for BC Housing Market” and 2013 Q2 Housing Forecast Update Table.

http://www.bcrea.bc.ca/docs/news-2013/2013-05-09forecast.pdf

 

As for Richmond residents and prospective residents, here’s the MLS stats for the last 30 days:

 

 

 

 

Out of the 72 houses that were sold in the past 30 days:

• As of April 1, 2013, HST will be replaced by GST and PST.

• This transition will only affect new housing or substantially (90% or more) renovated homes.

• This transition will not affect resale homes which are not taxable.

• As for real estate commission, only 5% GST is applicable instead of the 12% HST applied before the transition.

• After April 1, 2013, a temporary 2% transitional tax may apply in addition to the 5% GST in some cases:

– New housing or substantial renovations that are 10% or more completed before April 1, 2013.

– Possession or ownership takes place before April 1, 2015.

These are general information only.

It is important to consult your tax lawyer or tax accountant concerning any and all tax implications resulting from the purchase and sale of real properties in your specific situation, including GST and HST liabilities, exemptions, transitional provisions and rebates.

For more information, please refer to Canada Revenue Agency:

Elimination of the HST in British Columbia in 2013:

Questions and Answers (Notice 270 )

www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pub/gi/notice270/notice270-e.html

Transitional Rules for Real Property Including New Housing (Notice 276)

www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pub/gi/notice276/notice276-e.html

BC Transition Tax on New Housing (Info Sheet GI-156)

www.cra-arc.gc.ca/E/pub/gi/gi-156/gi-156-e.html

 

And “What’s Taxable under the PST and What’s Not?” from the BC Ministry of Finance:

www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/topic/BED47DA4EBDBA60A5F28622B8B2E1451/uploads/whats_taxable_whats_not.pdf

 

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver reported that “home sales continued at below average pace” although interests at open houses have increased in February 2013 as compared to the previous six to eight months.

In addition, the time it takes to sell a home has shortened and the sales-to-active listing ratio has increased to above 11% for the first time since June 2012.

The statistics for Greater Vancouver are numbers to show us how the market is doing in general. Every city in the Greater Vancouver area may have different numbers. Even different neighborhood within a city can have different number. For example, homeowners have received the 2013 Property Assessment Notice from BC Assessment from the beginning of the year. In Richmond, some areas showed an increased in assessed value whereas some areas showed a decrease in assessed value.

Therefore, it is important to ask your realtor who specialized in the area you are looking to buy and sell to provide you with your neighborhood specific statistics to see how your area is doing.

Since March 1, 2013, here are some basic statistics for Richmond, BC:

The stats can be narrowed down even more to your specific neighborhood and your property type. Please contact Jenny at 604-818-7317 or jenny@ultimatehomeguide.ca for your neighborhood specific market statistics.

According to Eugene Klein, the president of Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, Home sale activity has remained below historical averages for about seven months now. Home sellers either reduce their asking price or remove their property from the market altogether if they are not getting the price they want.

The MLS Home Price Index composite benchmark price has reached a peak in May 2012 to $625,100 and has declined about 6% to $599,100 in January 2013. Last month has the second lowest residential property sales since 2001.

The sales-to-active-listings ratio is currently at 10.2% which indicate a buyer’s market.

Take Richmond for example, in the past two weeks, 176 detached homes became available and only 30 detached homes were sold.

For attached homes, there were 219 new listings which do not include homes already on the market and only 55 were sold. This represents more than 4 months supplies of homes currently available on the market.

If the sellers have not taken their homes off the market, it may be an indication that the sellers have to sell their homes. This presents a great opportunity for buyers to get in the market and have more flexibility to negotiate price and terms.

If you are looking to buy, it is a great time to take your picks of home from a large pool of listings on the market and very little competition from other buyers.

Please feel free to contact Jenny at 604-818-7317 or jenny@ultimatehomeguide.ca to discuss your needs.

 

The Privacy Commissioner of Canada recommends checking your credit report once a year to protect against identity theft. The Canadian provincial credit reporting laws grant consumers the right to receive a free copy of your credit report by mail if you request in writing or in person and include a photocopy of identification.

 

The two major credit reporting agencies in Canada are:

Equifax Canada Inc. www.equifax.com

TransUnion of Canada www.transunion.ca

You may also request your free personal credit file by phone using TransUnion’s secure automated telephone service at 1-800-663-9980. It only takes about 7 minutes.

Note: Your free credit reports do not include your credit score. You can request your free credit report from Equifax and purchase your credit score for $11.95 (tax included).

Once you get your credit report, check for new accounts opened, inquiries made, address change and identification information change to ensure accuracy and watch out for any debts or activities you haven’t authorized. If you find something inaccurate, inform the credit reporting agency right away. As mandated by consumer reporting legislation, you can have information deleted that cannot be verified but you cannot change negative information that is accurate on your credit file.

Factors that influence your credit score include types of account (installment, revolving, open payment), numbers of account, limit on accounts, balance outstanding and if they are “paid as agreed.” Generally, the credit is grouped by industry and the more diversified in industries and types of account, the higher the score.

On the other hand, it can negatively impact your credit score if you apply for credit from lenders known to charge high interest rate or lenders that provide credit to people with low credit score (ie. department store credit cards). Too many inquiries (ie. when lenders check your credit rating) in a 12 month period may also negatively impact your credit score because it could be viewed as a sign that the consumer is over-extending oneself. If the different inquiries happened in a very short period of time, as when people are shopping for the best rate from different lenders, the inquiries are often considered as one event and do not have a negative effect on credit score.

Your credit score is one of the important factors lenders consider before they extend credit to you. In addition to your credit score, lenders also look at your debt-to-income ration, income stability, type of loan/credit you are seeking, payment history, how much debt you are carrying, length of time you’ve been using credit (more than 5 years is considered solid), etc.

Talk to your mortgage broker before you go shopping for a home to find out how much you can afford and to arrange for a mortgage. If you need referral to mortgage brokers, please contact me at 604-818-7317 or jenny@ultimatehomeguide.ca