NEWS IN BRIEF No breaks on B.C. property transfer tax

VICTORIA (CP) — Finance Minister Mike de Jong says there will be no reprieve from British Columbia’s proposed 15 per cent property transfer tax on foreigners buying homes in the Metro Vancouver area. The additional tax comes into effect on Aug. 2 and the minister says long-term contracts, such as pre-sale agreements for condos, will not be grandfathered. Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board president Dan Morrison has called on the government to exempt real estate deals from the new tax that are in the process of closing to minimize short-term volatility in the market. De Jong says similar taxes introduced in other countries to curb foreign real estate investment have resulted in a levelling of the market. The government has revealed today that 86 per cent of the more than $1 billion spent by foreign buyers in the province over a six week period ending in mid-July was purchased in Metro Vancouver. The figures also show during that period that there was $8.8 billion in real estate transactions and foreign purchases accounted for about 10 per cent of that.