"Outsiders need not apply"

[Vacancyrate]

Those are interesting numbers regarding ownership rates in Kelowna. Can you link to them for us?

http://www.kelownadailycourier.ca/news/ ... 31ac5.html

One-quarter of downtown Kelowna homes are vacant or not used as a primary residence, according to information from the 2016 Statistics Canada census. In parts of the Lower Mission, the comparable figure is 17 per cent.

[alanjh595]

For those Canadians that choose to purchase real estate in Kelowna and only spend 4 months per year here, should get a 66% reduction on their property tax bill.
After all for th 66% of the calendar year, they are not here and don't use the services that the city provides.

They are not here flushing their toilets or taking showers. They don't drive on our roads, or use the schools. Not likely that they need fire protection for 2/3 of the year. They don't use the libraries, sidewalks, swimming pools, etc.....etc.
They don't contribute to rush hour traffic problems.
Don't take jobs away from locals.

They DO bring in CASH every year and they share it with all the vendors such as;
Orchardists
Gas stations
Grocery stores
BC liquor stores/pubs/nightclubs
Veggie stands
Golf courses
Restaurants
Garbage
Water
Sewer
Wineries
ETC.

They don't leave a mess behind, and are friendly. They encourage their other out-of-province friends to come, and bring their money with them as well.

[Urban Cowboy]

I say to Albertans (or anyone), upset with the BC property tax: If you dont like it, move out or go back to where you came from.

Why should Okanagan residents cow-tow to Albertans.

Oh I don't know, maybe because they are fellow Canadians, our neighbors, and they help feed you.

Oh and BTW it's not property tax they are pi$$ed off about, it's this blatant NDP sponsored extortion tax, they just happened to give a buzzword name to, in order to fool people such as you, into believing they are doing something admirable, when in reality they are simply lining their pockets, and in the process causing all manner of economic fallout that all of us will have to bear.

You can't possibly be a BC business person, to make such a short sighted remark!

[sublime]

So someone 40 years ago worked hard and invested a some money into an eventual retirement place. Great foresight and good on them. This place has been owned the entire time, now they owe a % every year to money hungry government on a made up value of the property. Why does anyone think this is remotely reasonable?

So here's some options... Rent it out when you are not occupying the property to get that tax credited back. Retire and move here full time and pay no extra tax. Sell your place that you made ten fold on having owned it for 40 years and chose a different place to retire. How about your retire in your own beautiful province or even another country. The last option, suck it up for a couple years if you are close to retirement and pay the tax. After all if you want it that bad (retire here) and have made a profit then its obviously worth the investment.

Again no counter solution to the problem plaguing the community that lives, works and raises a family full time in the Okanagan. If you are so concerned about living here why are you not concerned about the full time residence...? You know the people you want to become? Keep tap dancing around the issue..."It's just not right."...and your solution to the problem is? There is a problem.

[Urban Cowboy]

Last I looked we live in Canada, supposedly a free country, and a country BC is part of.

No one has the right to dictate, whether a home owner should risk renting out their property, or be forced to pay a heavy fine if they choose not to.

Only in an NDP mind is this acceptable.

Will the NDP be covering the cost of remediation/repairs, in all the units owners do decide to rent out, then find destroyed when the tenant vacates?????

This is not conduct I would normally attribute to a free country, not in the slightest.

Oh and another thing of note, how the heck did the NDP decide on where this tax applies, by throwing the names of a few communities into a hat and conducting a random draw?

Like how does it make sense to include Kelowna, West Kelowna, but not Lake Country which is the fastest growing community in BC? There are all kinds of homes in Lake Country, that function as summer homes for someone living elsewhere.

[vegas1500]

So someone 40 years ago worked hard and invested a some money into an eventual retirement place. Great foresight and good on them. This place has been owned the entire time, now they owe a % every year to money hungry government on a made up value of the property. Why does anyone think this is remotely reasonable?

So here's some options... Rent it out when you are not occupying the property to get that tax credited back. Retire and move here full time and pay no extra tax. Sell your place that you made ten fold on having owned it for 40 years and chose a different place to retire. How about your retire in your own beautiful province or even another country. The last option, suck it up for a couple years if you are close to retirement and pay the tax. After all if you want it that bad (retire here) and have made a profit then its obviously worth the investment.

Again no counter solution to the problem plaguing the community that lives, works and raises a family full time in the Okanagan. If you are so concerned about living here why are you not concerned about the full time residence...? You know the people you want to become? Keep tap dancing around the issue..."It's just not right."...and your solution to the problem is? There is a problem.

i have rental properties....i have a VACATION property that i dont rent out for a reason. I have owned for about 13 years and spend 3-4 months a year there. i purchased in 2006 and can tell you i have realized very little gain. when i am there, i shop local, eat local, use local services, get my vehicles serviced there, purchase a new vehicle in kelowna roughly every second year, bought a boat there and was going to be looking for a new one this year, visit the wineries, hire local contractors...i could go on and on. my property tax is $3000/year and with this new tax it will be $15000/year....you say "suck it up". I agree there is an issue with affordable housing but no one anywhere would expect their taxes to go up 500%, that is just ludicrous and almost criminal.....i know you will disagree but every tax paying citizen should be concerned about this as its just the beginning.

[Urban Cowboy]

^^^ Nothing "almost criminal" about it, as far as I'm concerned it is criminal, and makes for a great monument to NDP ineptitude.

[alanjh595]

So here's some options... Rent it out when you are not occupying the property to get that tax credited back. Retire and move here full time and pay no extra tax. Sell your place that you made ten fold on having owned it for 40 years and chose a different place to retire. How about your retire in your own beautiful province or even another country. The last option, suck it up for a couple years if you are close to retirement and pay the tax. After all if you want it that bad (retire here) and have made a profit then its obviously worth the investment.

Again no counter solution to the problem plaguing the community that lives, works and raises a family full time in the Okanagan. If you are so concerned about living here why are you not concerned about the full time residence...? You know the people you want to become? Keep tap dancing around the issue..."It's just not right."...and your solution to the problem is? There is a problem.

The thing of it is, that these other CANADIANS, our brothers and sisters, have paid their federal income taxes and those taxes have been used to better the lives in BC and in the Okanagan.
Some have purchased property in this area, where they spend their Summers, (they could have purchased in Arizona instead), they HAVE paid all the Provincial and Municipal taxes associated with owning that property for years, and only used it for less that 50% of the year.
WHY should they NOW be penalized for living across a line on a map that differentiates them from BC?

Why does this "Johnny come lately" government come in and run all of our own people from the property that they bought with their money, earned in Canada, with all taxes paid to Canada...........?

Where would they invest next? The Shuswap? What is stopping this government from extending their stupid tax to that area?

There currently are many areas of the USA that are exclusionary for white people, this government doesn't discriminate by skin colour, they discriminate by which side of the tracks you have lived on.

[adionline]

I absolutely despise the NDP and their "vision" for BC. There are so many people out there without the slightest clue on how these changes will impact life and business in BC. A prosperous and happy province requires a healthy economy (first and foremost). Penalising Canadians on all fronts while allowing continued foreign investors to eat up our properties will eventually be the demise of this entire Country. Those who think this new direction will actually make life more affordable will be in for a real doozy. The cost of living will continue to soar and wages will further stagnate as small businesses will now be incentivized to keep pay rolls low. Many businesses-to-be will simply setup shop elsewhere. There will be fewer jobs, fewer opportunities and less money to buy all these "affordable" houses that will obviously materialize out of thin air as soon as the Albertans stop buying vacation properties here. If you think it's bad now then you've underestimated the negative impacts this current government will have on our economy and quality of life.

[Urban Cowboy]

I absolutely despise the NDP and their "vision" for BC. There are so many people out there without the slightest clue on how these changes will impact life and business in BC. A prosperous and happy province requires a healthy economy (first and foremost). Penalising Canadians on all fronts while allowing continued foreign investors to eat up our properties will eventually be the demise of this entire Country. Those who think this new direction will actually make life more affordable will be in for a real doozy. The cost of living will continue to soar and wages will further stagnate as small businesses will now be incentivized to keep pay rolls low. Many businesses-to-be will simply setup shop elsewhere. There will be fewer jobs, fewer opportunities and less money to buy all these "affordable" houses that will obviously materialize out of thin air as soon as the Albertans stop buying vacation properties here. If you think it's bad now then you've underestimated the negative impacts this current government will have on our economy and quality of life.

Someone else said it best, we don't need an speculation tax at all, the only thing required to lower the cost of real estate in BC is for the NDP to stay in power.

They're too stupid to grasp that chasing away small business, tourists, out of province home owners, while in the process taxing everyone to death, equates to a recession, and in a recession all those poor people who can't afford a home now, won't even be able to qualify for a mortgage as they won't have a job.

NDP math at its finest.

[sabumnim]

I say to Albertans (or anyone), upset with the BC property tax: If you dont like it, move out or go back to where you came from.

Why should Okanagan residents cow-tow to Albertans.

Oh I don't know, maybe because they are fellow Canadians, our neighbors, and they help feed you.

Oh and BTW it's not property tax they are pi$$ed off about, it's this blatant NDP sponsored extortion tax, they just happened to give a buzzword name to, in order to fool people such as you, into believing they are doing something admirable, when in reality they are simply lining their pockets, and in the process causing all manner of economic fallout that all of us will have to bear.

You can't possibly be a BC business person, to make such a short sighted remark!

Wrong. I've run two successful businesses here in the Okanagan. I am also a member of no political party and do not advocate for any party, actually. Quit blaming the current government for taxation. You all knew they were a socialist government that taxes heavily. The BC Liberals ruined this province, so the taxpayers kicked them out. Except you all in the Okanagan. You are all old, very stubborn, and set in your ways, that's the real problem (and not the NDP).

I think that the Okanagan over relies on Alberta for its sustenance, just like West Kelowna over-relies on Kelowna for its own sustenance.

Wean your foolish dependence on Albertans and marijuana ! LOL

[60-YEARS-in-Ktown]

I don't think I am the only one that is tired of BC,s Bring Cash attitude..
But that and our skewed ease of confiscating vehicles for drivers for passing cars at a spirited pace, is just getting too much..

I don't even think of going for a holiday in B.C. anymore, far cheaper, and less restriction on your driving style, to travel south of the border.
I love BC, was born here, always lived here, but am getting fed up with the money grabbing game..

[eires37]

I don't think I am the only one that is tired of BC,s Bring Cash attitude..
But that and our skewed ease of confiscating vehicles for drivers for passing cars at a spirited pace, is just getting too much..

I don't even think of going for a holiday in B.C. anymore, far cheaper, and less restriction on your driving style, to travel south of the border.
I love BC, was born here, always lived here, but am getting fed up with the money grabbing game..

Do they have any other move???

[Bsuds]

I don't even think of going for a holiday in B.C. anymore, far cheaper, and less restriction on your driving style, to travel south of the border.

Funny because we have cut back on travelling in the US because of the costs involved. Unless you are talking about Mexico?
That 30% on the dollar is tough to take in the US.

[burnedatstake]

people here have made it seem like home renting or ownership isnt a "right". well i have news for you - living without taxes isnt a "right" neither. if you dont like the taxes - to bad so sad. maybe right wing cheerleaders/bullies might have to wait 16 years like ndp supporters have. because at the end of the day - nothing is a guarantee - not even a liberal party return. no matter how much hot air cheerleaders spew.