Canada Tightens Real Estate Tax Loophole For Foreign Investors

Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau has announced new measures designed to help stabilize Canada's housing market, particularly in overheated areas such as Vancouver and Toronto.

Among them will be the closure of a loophole some foreign residents are using to avoid paying capital gains tax on investment homes.

Going forward, only people who used their home as a principal residence will be eligible for the government's exemption, Morneau said.

"We want that exemption to be appropriately interpreted," he told reporters.

"We need to have the beneficial owner of the home being here in Canada, we have to have that owner living in the home as their principal residence."

Average Canadian sold houses climbs 9% to $439,144 in March

CBC reports that the average price of a Canadian home sold in March increased by nine per cent compared with the same month a year earlier, rising to almost $440,000. The average house price was $439,144, and actual home sales activity rose 9.5 per cent above March 2014 levels.

While the spring home buying season is off to a hot start, the two big markets of Toronto and Vancouver continue to skew the numbers higher, the Canadian Real Estate Association said Wednesday. If sales in those two markets are stripped out, the average price for Canadian resale homes drops to $332,711, with an annual increase of just 2.4 per cent.

Vancouver Canucks Made It Back To NHL Playoffs

The Vancouver Canucks were able to officially clinch a playoff berth while away from the rink Tuesday, guaranteed due to results elsewhere in the NHL. (Jonathan Hayward/The Canadian Press)

Canadian Press
The Vancouver Canucks are in the playoffs, having clinched a spot with the Los Angeles Kings losing to the Edmonton Oilers Tuesday night.

And that means a win for local bars and restaurants as well, says Ian Tostenson, president of the B.C Restaurant and Food services Association.

"This is probably at least a million dollars a game for the economy of Vancouver. It's massive."

Not Surprising! Vancouver ranked No. 2 globally for unaffordable homes

Alexandra Posadzki, The Canadian Press 
Vancouver is the second most unaffordable housing market in the world after Hong Kong, according to a new study of major property markets.

That could spell trouble for homeowners if mortgage rates rise, economists say.

"Given how high house prices are relative to household incomes, you'd only have to see a moderate increase in mortgage rates to have a really huge hit to affordability," said David Madani, Canada economist at Capital Economics.

The annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey ranks real estate markets in Canada, the United States, Australia, China, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore and the United Kingdom.

Meet Vancouver couple who struggles to make ends meet despite making $25,000 a month

PHOTO: FOTOLIA

Eric and Ilsa put lifestyle ahead of financial concerns but it has put them in a bit of a bind. He is 41 and a physician, she is 39 and a dentist.

They have five children, ranging in age from less than a year to 9, all of whom will go to private school. They have substantial earning power – although Ilsa is on mat leave at the moment – but Eric chooses to work for less money than he could.

They are living rent free in a relative’s house (they pay taxes, utilities and upkeep) and “regret not having bought a house years ago,” Eric writes in an e-mail. Houses in their Vancouver neighbourhood have doubled in price in the past two years. The house where they live is going up for sale soon, so they need to move quickly.

Last fall, they bought a building lot for $1.1-million and are planning to build a house large enough for their family and a live-in nanny. But with a combined income of $360,000 ($450,000 when Ilsa returns to work) and an $800,000 mortgage, can they afford the builder’s $1-million price tag? Who will lend them the money?

Canada's Gang Hotspots

CBC Reportage

In Atlantic Canada, the Bacchus outlaw motorcycle club runs the drug trade, according to police biker crime specialists. In oil-rich Alberta, bullets fly when the Red Scorpions clash with the United Nations crew. In the Prairies, the White Boy Posse's migration east from Edmonton has spilled blood in Saskatchewan.

Gang activity even blights Ottawa, one of the world's safest cities.

The capital logged a record 49 shootings in 2014, prompting police to address concerns about gangland disputes. Among those incidents was a targeted Boxing Day shooting that wounded one man during what investigators called "infighting" between members of the Crips.

Although Canada's crime rate is trending down, organized crime hotspots still seethe — often outside the urban hubs of Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.

"Canadian prince of pot" wife won’t run for Liberals election in Vancouver

The Canadian Press
Liberal leader Justin Trudeau’s much talked about support for legalizing marijuana has not helped the wife of a high-profile pot crusader get a shot at running for the party in the next election.

Jodie Emery’s attempt to seek the nomination in the riding of Vancouver East has gone up in smoke.

Liberal spokesman Olivier Duchesneau has confirmed that the party’s so-called green light candidate review committee rejected her bid.

Jodie’s husband Marc Emery was extradited to the U.S. in 2010, where he pleaded guilty to selling marijuana seeds to American customers and was sentenced to five years in prison.

Two BC Terror Suspects Plead Not Guilty

Two people accused in what the RCMP described as a plot to blow up the British Columbia legislature have both pleaded not guilty in a Vancouver court.

The Canadian Press
Two people accused in what the RCMP described as a plot to blow up the British Columbia legislature have both pleaded not guilty in a Vancouver court.

Jury selection began today for John Nuttall and Amanda Korody who are charged with knowingly facilitating a terrorist activity, conspiracy and making or possessing an explosive device.

61 yr-old man accused of trying to abduct baby at Vancouver grocery store

Police allege that the man tried to forcibly remove an infant from a stroller while the baby’s mother shopped in a Vancouver grocery store

CTV - A 61-year-old man is in custody and facing charges after he attempted to snatch a baby out of a stroller in a grocery store, Vancouver Police allege.

The incident occurred at Donald's Market in Vancouver shortly before noon on Saturday.
Police allege that the man tried to forcibly remove an infant from a stroller while the baby’s mother shopped.

Wish list for the seven NHL Canadian teams

The Montreal Canadiens are currently sitting atop the Atlantic Division standings with 46 points, thanks in large part to goaltender Carey Price. (Richard Wolowicz/Getty Image

Paul McGaughey, CBC 
Montreal Canadiens
It might be tough to say that a team is in need of something when they are sitting at the top of the division standings -- which is currently the case for the Canadiens.

However, the Tampa Bay Lightning have equalled Montreal's 46 points and the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs are also in striking distance with 45 and 43 points respectively.

For the Canadiens to separate themselves from the pack in the Atlantic, it may come down to a simple equation: they don't allow a lot of goals, ranking sixth at 2.37 per game, but they also aren't exactly an offensive juggernaut, ranking 19th in the NHL at 2.60 goals-for per game.

On the surface at least, that doesn't seem to leave much wiggle room for error.

Check Out Canada Most Expensive $829K Rolls-Royce In Vancouver

This Phantom Pinnacle Travel Edition for sale in Vancouver is one of only 15 in the world. | Todd Duncan

Sara Harowitz | Huff
The heat has turned up on Vancouver's luxury car selection with the unveiling of the most expensive Rolls-Royce ever to come to Canada.

The Phantom Pinnacle Travel Edition, unveiled at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Vancouver on Thursday, is priced at $829,000 — before tax. Vancouver's model, brought to the city by OpenRoad Auto Group, is just one of 15 in the world and one of two in North America.

Whoa.

Guitar signed by Eric Clapton, McCartney stolen in West Vancouver

This image released by Starpix shows Eric Clapton performing at the 12-12-12 The Concert for Sandy Relief at Madison Square Garden in New York Dec. 12, 2012.

CP
A guitar graced with the signatures of music legends including Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton and Jeff Beck has been reported stolen from a store in West Vancouver.

Police say the red and black guitar was framed with photos of all the musicians who signed it.

The Peavey Rock Legends guitar was stolen last week and had a price tag of $10,800.

Canadian woman arrested after her 9yr old daughter's body is found in a car trunk

A Canadian mother named Lisa Batstone has been charged with murder after the body of her 8yr old daughter was found in the trunk of a car. The lifeless body of Tegan Batstone was discovered by police responding to a call about a car in a ditch, just south of Vancouver, British Columbia on Wednesday Dec. 10th.

According to the Toronto Sun, the divorced mother, 41, was taken into custody at the scene before being charged with second-degree murder. Authorities are yet to say why the mother killed the girl and also the girl's cause of death. An autopsy has been scheduled. The woman's lawyers told the court that she'd been depressed and had been on a variety of medications before the incident.

Tell 'em! Ugly Christmas sweaters holiday new tradition

Stephen Peever holds up a ugly Christmas sweater on Granville Street in downtown Vancouver, B.C., Friday, Dec. 5, 2014. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward

Justin SmallbridgeThe Canadian Press
For years, sweaters bristling with bells, lights, appliqued Santa Clauses, snowmen and reindeer were mocked as the exclusive province of the tasteless at Christmas.

But the tide is turning and the ugly Christmas sweater has become the season’s newest tradition and continues to grow.

“Right after Halloween we bring in the ugly Christmas sweaters,” said Tracy Lynn the manager of Used House of Vintage, where street-level signs — one brandished by a man in a Mr. Peanut costume — tell Vancouver shoppers they can find “5,000 ugly Christmas sweaters upstairs.”

“It goes up every year. It’s definitely up this year,” Lynn said of the amount of merchandise her store was selling.

“We’re selling more, sooner, earlier in the season than we were last year.”

Both Lynn and Stephen Peever, who mans a sidewalk stall, Ugly Christmas Sweaters, say demand had increased markedly in the past three or four years. They attributed that growth to more people having office and house parties featuring ugly Christmas sweaters.

Caption This $630/Month Curtained-Off Space In Vancouver

'I'm renting a private space in the living room," reads a Vancouver ad, posted to Craigslist on Sunday and titled "PRIVATE SPACE , GREAT APARTMENT."

Vancouver | Top court rules on pregnant women’s benefits

Colourbox.com A woman is seen holding a stethoscope against her pregnant belly.

 Keven Drews

The Canadian Press
The country’s top court has ruled quickly and unexpectedly from the bench, siding with the B.C. Teachers’ Federation in an employment dispute over maternity benefits.

The decision is the latest court victory for the union, but in this case the issues focused on two types of special employment benefits covering pregnancy and parental leave.

The union argued the B.C. Public School Employers’ Association was discriminating against female teachers in the Surrey school district, which is located outside of Vancouver, by denying them parental benefits if they had already received pregnancy benefits.

The employer asked the top court to side with a lower court ruling, which ruled there was no discrimination, and dismiss the teachers’ appeal.

Not long after oral arguments concluded Wednesday morning, the justices announced they would allow the teachers’ appeal. A subsequent Supreme Court of Canada news release announced the oral judgment would follow within 48 hours.

Online Retailer Amazon Canada same day delivery coming to Vancouver, Toronto

Amazon is promising that staff in its Metro Vancouver warehouse are now able to process and deliver orders on the same day. (Scott Sady/Associated Press)

Amazon Canada has announced it is now offering same delivery in Vancouver and Toronto on online orders received before noon. But it comes at a price.

"With same-day delivery, customers in Toronto and Vancouver can conveniently take care of errands or complete holiday shopping in a day with just a few clicks," Amazon.ca country manager Alexandre Gagnon said in a statement released this morning.

Amazon says the service will be offered seven days a week, but not all items the company sells will be available for quick delivery.

The company says there are more than one million items available for same-day delivery to Toronto customers, and hundreds of thousands available to those in Vancouver.

Busted | Canadian model arrested with 50,000 ecstasy pills at airport

An aspiring model and a private pilot, both from Canada, have been arrested on federal drug charges in Southern California after authorities say they arrived from Las Vegas in a private jet carrying drugs worth roughly $2 million.

Krista Marieann Boseley, 30, of Vancouver, British Columbia, and her travelling companion, Gilles Lapointe, 61, were arrested Oct. 9 at John Wayne Airport in Orange County, according to federal court documents filed with the U.S. District Court in Santa Ana.

Authorities were alerted that a plane previously believed to be involved in drug trafficking was about to touch down at the airport, the documents said. They observed Boseley and Lapointe getting out of the plane and approached and asked to search their bags as they rented a car.

The two consented to the search, the documents say, and with the help of a drug-sniffing dog authorities found 50,000 Ecstasy pills and about 90 pounds (40 kilograms) of raw MDMA in their luggage.

Trailer | Vancouver Reality Show About Rich Asian Girls

 

A Vancouver reality show that follows the lives of the city's wealthy Asian women has released a trailer in advance of its premiere next week.  HBICtv, as the show is called (it stands for "Hot Bitch In Charge"), is about "the daughters of affluent, Mandarin speaking Chinese Canadians living in Vancouver," according to the trailer's YouTube description
.
"They are young independent women starting their life and careers with the newest Hermes Birken bags and YSL shoes while vying for the status of #HBIC."

The trailer introduces some of the show's characters: Flo.z, Chelsea, CocoParis, and Joy. Based on the dizzying array of clips, the show follows the women as they pop champagne, shop, party, and walk in fashion shows.

Ebola News: Screenings to take place at airports in 6 Canadian cities

Reuters

Canada will step up border screening to try to prevent an Ebola importation to this country, federal Health Minister Rona Ambrose says. Screenings, more staff for Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, Halifax, Ottawa, Calgary

"Our government will be taking the additional step of taking targeted temperature screens," she told the House of Commons on Wednesday, though she offered no detail about what that would mean or whether it would be only at airports or all border crossings.

The Canadian Press requested an interview with an official of the Public Health Agency of Canada to get clarification on Canada's plans, but one was not granted. However, several hours after Ambrose made her remark in the Commons, the agency issued a press release providing some detail of what increased screening will look like.

The statement, from the new head of the Public Health Agency of Canada, noted there are no direct flights to Canada from the affected countries in West Africa.