Understand the British Columbia Property Transfer Tax
You are charged property transfer tax in British Columbia when you make changes to a property'stitle, including:
- acquiring a registered interest in the property
- gaining an additional registered interest in the property
- becoming the registered holder of a lease, life estate, or right to purchase for the property
The amount of tax you pay is based on the fair market value of the land and improvements (e.g. buildings) on the date of
registration unless you purchase a pre-sold strata unit. The tax is charged at a rate of:
- 1% on the first $200,000,
- 2% on the portion of the fair market value greater than $200,000 and up to and including $2,000,000, and
- 3% on the portion of the fair market value greater than $2,000,000.
For example, if the fair market value of a property is $850,000, the
tax paid is $15,000.
Estimate Tax Payable with Fair Market Value: $850,000.00
1% on $200,000 or less: $2000
2% of remaining balance up to and including $2,000,000.00: $13000
Total Tax Payable $15000
If you have registered a life estate for the property, you will be
taxed based on your life expectancy. To calculate the taxable value of your
property, multiply the property's fair market value by the percentage corresponding to your life estate term.
Fair market value is the price that would be paid by a willing
purchaser to a willing seller for a property (land and improvements) in the open market on the date of
registration.
A property transfer is considered to be in the open market when anyone
likely to be interested in purchasing the property can make an offer. For
example, the seller lists the property with a realtor or advertises it for
sale.
The purchase price is considered the fair market value in most cases as
long as you register the property within a few months of signing the sales
contract. Otherwise, you will need to verify that the purchase price is fair
market value if:
- there was a significant change in value
- the condition of the property changed
- you didn't purchase the property in the open market
Non-Open Market Transfers
When a property transfer doesn't take place in the open market, fair
market value may be determined using other means such as:
- a recent independent appraisal, or
- the property valuation provided by BC Assessment
Generally, the property valuation provided by BC Assessment reflects
your property’s fair market value as of July 1 of the previous year. For
example, the 2013 roll value reflects market conditions at July 1, 2012. This
means that the assessed value may not reflect the current fair market value of
your property.
The current property valuation provided by BC Assessment can’t be used
in certain cases, such as when:
- changes have been made to the property (e.g. rezoning) since the assessment
- market conditions in the area of the property have changed since the assessment
- the land is classified as farm land (class 9)
- new or additional construction has been completed
Additional Property Transfer Tax on Residential Property Transfers to Foreign Entities in the Greater Vancouver Regional District
