Edmonton man believes new tax will ax city’s real-estate market

An Edmonton man with a home in West Kelowna is predicting the city’s real estate market will tumble because of the province’s new speculation tax.

John Paul Janssens says the tax will put the brakes on new development, curb spending by out-of-towners, and cause an across-the-board drop in house prices.

“Under the NDP’s plan, my taxes for merely owning a home in West Kelowna will increase by $14,000!” Janssens writes in a letter to West Kelowna Mayor Doug Findlater.

“Have you and council thought about the impact the new speculation tax will have on the West Kelowna economy?” Janssens asks.

The new tax was announced as part of the NDP’s provincial budget last week.

It will apply to people who own properties in West Kelowna and Kelowna, but who do not have income from within B.C., and who leave their properties vacant for much of the year.

This year, the tax will be charged at the rate of $5 for every $1,000 of a property’s assessed value, quadrupling to $20 in 2019.

Janssens bought a home in West Kelowna six years ago to have a place near family. He and his family spend about two months consecutively in the home, as well as numerous weekends.

“I have brought friends and clients out to stay at our home to go on wine tours and golf in the Valley.

“I am concerned that house prices will drop signiÀcantly, that developments that have been approved won’t go ahead, and that developments currently under construction could be signiÀcantly impacted as people walk away from their deposits,” he says.