Email re: BC Speculation Tax from Ron Myers
Email from a resident opposing the tax, citing it as an unfair burden on fellow Canadians that will not effectively reduce real estate prices.
From: Ron Myers Sent: April-02-18 5:13 PM To: aboyd@langford.ca; admin@cityoflangford.ca; mayor@sidney.ca; mayorandcouncil@esquimalt.ca; mayor@saanich.ca; Mayor And Council Email mayorandcouncil@viewroyal.ca; admin@northsaanich.ca; mayor@colwood.ca; obcouncil@oakbay.ca; jranns@metchosin.ca; mtait@sooke.ca; kwilliams@highlands.ca; municipalhall@csaanich.ca Cc: Helps Lisa mayor@victoria.ca; Mannix John ;Young Ric ; premier@gov.bc.ca; FIN.Minister@gov.bc.ca; andrew.wilkinson.mla@leg.bc.ca Subject: Fwd: BC Speculation Tax
Dear Mayors Young, Desjardins, Price, Atwell, Screech, Finall, Hamilton, Jensen, Ranns, Tait, Williams and Windsor:
Please find below a copy of a note which I recently sent to Mayor Helps of Victoria. I thought I should send this to you as well since the proposed speculation tax will negatively impact your communities as well and affects non-resident Canadian home owners who contribute to your communities. As highlighted below, this tax is un-Canadian and will do little or nothing to reduce real estate prices while hurting individual Canadians as well as the communities where the tax will be imposed. I urge you to strongly oppose this ill conceived and unfair tax proposed by the NDP government.
Thank you for your consideration of this important issue.
Sincerely yours, Ron Myers
Sent from my iPhone
Begin forwarded message:
From: Ron Myers Date: March 31, 2018 at 4:36:01 PM PDT To: mayor@victoria.ca Cc: Jeffrey Myers, premier@gov.bc.ca, FIN.Minister@gov.bc.ca, contact@bcliberals.com, andrew.wilkinson.mla@leg.bc.ca Subject: BC Speculation Tax
Dear Mayor Helps:
It was a pleasure chatting with you on the bridge this afternoon. Thank you for letting me impose on your time. As we discussed, my family and I are quite distressed with the proposed speculation tax. We believe it unfairly targets fellow Canadians who have in many cases contributed to the communities in which they have vacation homes often for many years and even decades. This speculation tax is effectively running fellow Canadians out of town. Let me summarize some of the points we discussed as follows:
- while I understand the desire to slow down rising real estate costs, part-time Canadian home owners have not caused this problem. Low interest rates for the last 15+ years, off shore money and more recently a migration from Vancouver are I (and most economists) believe the main causes.
- we are not speculators; we have owned a condo in Victoria for 15 years and have contributed to the community through good times and bad during that time. For example, we have purchased furniture, art, bicycles, kayaks and even a car. We have hired trades, bought groceries and supported local businesses like bakeries, pubs, restaurants, shops, etc. My wife and I play bridge at the local bridge club when we are here, I cycle with groups from the local bike shops and we patronize the theatre when we are here.
- we are retired and our longer term plan was to move here permanently when our family situation permitted; this plan is now in jeopardy as our taxes will increase from just over 6k$/year in 2018 to over 17k$/year with a speculation tax at 1% of assessed value.
- renting our condo is not a viable or practical solution. We generally spend 2 months here in the spring and in the fall, as well as up to a month during the rest of the year. The property must be rented full time in order to be exempt from the tax in which case we might as well sell since we would no longer be able to enjoy it.
- since our return to Victoria in early March we have discussed this with friends, neighbours, small business owners and average Victorians and everyone without exception is horrified that the NDP government is attempting this. They don’t believe it should be targeting fellow Canadians.
I urge you and your council to clarify your position and speak out against this ill conceived and unfair tax and join other cities in B.C. who also strongly oppose it. It unfairly targets fellow Canadians, it will have little effect on housing prices and more importantly it will hurt the communities where it is imposed. I would be more than happy to meet with you and/or the Victoria city council to discuss this further.
Sincerely yours, Ron Myers
Sent from my iPad