All Forum Posts by: Matt Frey

Hi Everybody,

Is it necessary for me to have a GST account number registered for a real estate business? From what I have read off of websites like taxtips.ca and  canadaone.ca, you only need to collect the taxes on goods and services sold once you have surpassed $30k. 

So If my strategy is to buy and hold, is this a necessary action to take, or should I wait before registering (in the event that I would sell a property?)

@Aaron S. Yes, t was in Bonnie Doon. We were thinking that this property's rental revenue seemed to good to be true. On top of that we were called and notified the day of the listing's expiration, which wasn't mentioned when we went and viewed it. Could have been a simple mistake but that was another red flag for us.

@Account Closed We did ask the real estate agent and he said that the current owners had updated the basement kitchen and added another room. However we didn't think that these renos would add a $100k additional price. What I thought was that the seller, given the area the property was in, could list it for a similar price. The house was pretty old and a lot of the newer developments in the area were much more modern.

In the end, the listing expired and we didn't put in an offer. We still wanted a bit more time to go over the details before putting in an offer.

Hi Everybody,

Just this weekend I went and viewed 6 properties. 2 Properties were desirable as investment purchases, but we had set our focus onto one property in particular.

It's currently listed for $389.9K in a neighbourhood not far from Whyte Ave, and the Downtown area. The demographic is older in this region and many of the newer builds going up in the area are modern duplexes and triplexes. On the listing the current owner, also an investor, states that the basement can rent for 1300/mth and the main for 1400/mth. the house is an older house, built in 1951, but seems structurally sound.

The odd part, for us, was that when we looked at the purchase history of the property it went for $299K in 2009 and $282K in 2012. Is it possible for the market value to have risen that much in this neighbourhood and in Edmonton? Are there any investors here that have any sources or links that I could use to investigate this further?

I appreciate any advice.

Best,

Matt

@Meghan Chomut I am planning on holding onto them for long term and adding more as the years pass.  I was pretty intrigued by the US 1031 exchange, because of the ability to upgrade to higher value properties in the long run, but with this news, I have to consider properties to purchase a little different for now.

Hey Guys, 

Thanks for your replies. That is unfortunate that Canada doesn't have a similar law. I was hoping to find one in my search. 

Thanks for clearing that up!

Best,

Matt

Hi,

I have been trying to find the equivalent law in Canada of the 1031 exchange in the US. 

What I have found, under the income tax act section 44 and 44.1, Canadian's can have their gains rolled over into other proper ties only if it was expropriation by the government, destroyed (partially or completely), and if the business was using the property to generate revenue excluding rental income.

I will post a link later if anybody is interested.

Has anyone found anything different? I read that Canadians can use the 1031 exchange on their US properties to bother other properties in the United States but it does not apply when buying/selling from US to Canada.

All the best,

Matt

@Jonathan Greene I still need to contact the condo boards to view their documents so I can accurately weigh the pros against the cons. I appreciate your perspective. All of these condos are close to downtown Edmonton, but they are out dated and older structurally.

Cheers!

Hi Guys,

Thanks for your advice. I will have to look into these condominium's websites further to find their documentation. 

My plan is to buy and hold. I asked the real estate agent whether or not the condos had any regulations regarding renters, and he said I would be able to rent out the units. I guess double checking with the condominium's rules should be done, just to confirm.

Dominick, are you able to list a few of the risks with purchasing condos for rental income? My main concern was if there were upcoming repair costs that would effect the overall return/cashflow.

Thanks!

Hi there,

I am new to the community and still haven't invested in any real estate yet. I am just wondering what everyone's thoughts are on investing in condos? What caveats should I be aware of? I know that condo fees can rise over time and that if major repairs are needed, the Board can ask for this money with relatively short notice.

I had viewed some condo units before and there had been a levy fee of $20k, for repairs and unit upgrades. This deterred me from purchasing the unit and had changed my opinion on Condos as rental property, but I still feel there is potential for these types of rental properties.

I have been eyeing a few up and have reached out to an agent with some listings of foreclosed condos in Edmonton, AB, Canada. I asked for some more information regarding the reserve fund but I was informed that I needed a pending offer to obtain that information. Is there another way to obtain it, and should I contact the Condo Board directly?

Also, should I get general liability insurance if I obtain the property or would the Condo Board have some form of insurance in place?