If buying new (home), buy what you need to beat the HST

The excitement is building. There are only five more sleeps until HST becomes a reality in B.C.

Facetiousness aside, and despite the relentless protests against the harmonization of the federal and provincial sales taxes in this province, get ready to dig a little deeper into your pockets on July 1.

Great way to celebrate Canada Day and the start of the summer vacation season, huh?

Regarding new homes, there are some misconceptions about the new tax. First off, the HST, like the GST, will not apply to existing homes. Second, if the new home is priced below the rebate threshold of $525,000, buyers will pay no more tax after July 1 than they currently pay under GST.

And although it might be obvious that five per cent GST and seven per cent PST equal 12 per cent, buyers of new homes priced above $525,000 will not pay the full 12 per cent for their homes because various rebates and tax credits apply. But make no mistake, some homebuyers are still going to feel the sting.

Rather than delve, in this column, into the technicalities of the HST application and rules, I suggest you ask your builder or realtor to fully explain how the new tax will impact your specific transaction.

There is also a lot of useful information posted on the Internet by various government and industry organizations, including the Canada Revenue Agency, the B.C. government, Canadian Home Builders' Association of B.C. and real estate boards throughout the province.

If a new home is in your future, there are many condos, town houses and single-detached offerings from which to choose -and priced low enough that you won't have to fret about the dreaded HST. Take your time looking and choose a home that matches both your budget and the needs of your family.

Meanwhile, the Greater Vancouver Home Builders' Association and its members intend to step up efforts to try to persuade governments at all levels to eliminate or mitigate the impediments to affordable home ownership. Government-imposed costs combine to total more than 20 per cent of the price of a new home in many regions, including Metro Vancouver. That needs to be examined.

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A Surrey newspaper publishes a weekly "Question of the Week," usually tied to a recent community event or circumstance. Recently, a murder in a relatively new subdivision dominated the news. A seasoned columnist drew a direct connection between crime rates and dense neighbourhoods.

Given that the murder was the second in a short period of time, it was not surprising the editor chose this question last week: "Do high-density neighbourhoods contribute to increased crime rates?"

You might as well have asked: "Does heavy smoking contribute to lung disease?"

The response was predictable, as 82 per cent of the respondents said "yes." Also, there was no mention of the number of respondents. The editor told me the number was likely in the high teens, maybe low 20s. Not exactly an Ipsos-like sampling. More like an intimate gathering of shrill NIMBYs.

Here's the thing. As much as I respect diverse opinions and encourage enthusiastic debate, there is scant evidence to conclude high-density neighbourhoods contribute to increased crime rates. In fact, the employment of density as an indicator in empirical analysis of crime is very limited.

People cause murders, not density. Homicides happen in South Surrey executive homes. A few years ago, a man was murdered at a $5-million Shaughnessy mansion. And let's not forget tony West Vancouver, home to more than a few multi-million-dollar homes, and the occasional killing.

White Rock is perceived by many as a sleepy community comprised largely of hillside homes with fabulous views. You might be surprised to learn that 50 per cent of the homes there are of the multi-family variety, occupied by a wide range of age groups. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I haven't noticed folks running around -or scootering around -committing crimes with reckless abandon. And to label high-density communities as an incubator of crime is an affront to the thousands of decent, hard-working families who live in condos, town houses, even secondary suites, throughout the Lower Mainland. Not everyone chooses to live in, or can afford, a single-detached home

(prepared by Peter Simpson/Vancouver Sun)