All Forum Posts by: Roy N.

@Victoria Coleman

"Cold and lots of snow" is a matter of perspective.  Our winter is just starting so we are still seeing highs around freezing, but come January our highs will be -20 to -15C with lows reaching below -30C.  Our average snowfall is comparable to Erie, PA (around 2.5m / ~8ft).  We've already had a couple of small snowfalls ... just to remind folks to mount their winter tyres. ;-)

You simply add snow removal to your operating plans.  Hire an insured plough service to clear the parking & walkways and sand when necessary.  Depending on the location (i.e. prevailing winds) and roof style, you may need to have the roof shovelled in high snow years ... or in those wild winters where you received rain after 5-6' of snow are down.

When rehabbing a building in an environment with *real* and prolonged winter, it pays to focus on air sealing and increasing the insulation of the building envelope.  We have properties were the energy efficiency has been improved by more than 50% (over 70% in one instance).

@Jillian Sidoti

It is not that use of an U.S.A. LP provides Canadians with a "tax break", but, because LLCs do not exist in Canada, the CRA treats them corporations and does not recognize an LLC as a flow-through entity. Any income from an LLC will be viewed by the CRA as a dividend, even if the LLC has elected to be taxed as a flow-through entity. As such, Canadians would not receive credit for any personal income tax paid in the U.S.A. when filing their Canadian taxes.

If a Canadian participates in an LLC which chooses to be taxed as a corporation, there is no dissonance.

@Cody Weber

If you search the {Canadian} forums there are a couple of threads discussing just that very subject ... one not terribly long ago as I still recall contributing to it.

The practice of {correctly} buying an unloved property; rehabbing that property; and re-financing has been around far longer than Brandon's catchy little acronym.

While the concept is universal, the financing component is somewhat different here in Canada than in the U.S.A., so keep that in-mind when reading content here on BP.   One favourable aspect is there is little problem purchasing the property with conventional financing (providing it qualifies ... depending on how unloved it is), and using a short-term (6-mnth - 2yr ... or Open).  When you finish making it efficient and pretty, simple refinance.  Additionally, the 6-month seasoning (in the U.S.A.) you read about here on BP is not a factor - though all lenders have their own internal guidelines on how quickly they will re-finance a property.   We have done so in as little as 45-days.

@Chaitan Lakkireddy

Go to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) website

The first-time homeowners program will allow for a LTV of 95% (SFH and Duplex) or 90% (triplex or quadriplex).

Theresa:

With the Ikea cabinets, unless you are building an island, most of the weight is carried by the rail mount. 

If the cabinetry is pedestal based, then you would lay the pedestals on the subfloor and lay your finish floor.

The OP was using Ikea cabinets.  Ikea uses a rail mount which hangs the boxes from the wall.  Shallow lowers, like uppers, could be hung without the feet attached.  Even with full depth lowers, the wall mount carries the bulk of the load ... the legs carry the toe kick and the front edge of the cabinet boxes.

We've had no issues with running flooring wall-to-wall under Ikea cabinets and prefer the better water protection.

In bathrooms, if we are not laying tile, we prefer to use linoleum or loose-lay fibre floor (without any seams).  For vanities we typically use wall-hung models (easier cleaning in student rentals) or 'furniture'-style and run the floor underneath either.   We also make  point to run our plumbing out of the wall rather than the floor.

Jill,

I was talking about loose-lay fibre floor (the checkerboard depicted in the photos above).   I have also laid linoleum and commercial vinyl plank (the self-adhesive type) under rail-hung cabinets.   I have not used the "click" floor in a kitchen - I'm not a big fan of it.

Jill:

If you allow the loose-lay {fibre} floor to fully relax when first installed, it does not move that much afterwards (1/8 - 1/4") when expanding and contracting.

If you are using Ikea cabinetry - or any similar rail-based installation - the cabinets are hung off rails on the wall and the weight on the adjustable legs will not restrict the floating floor from small movements.

When using floating floor under these style cabinets, we run it wall-to-wall and run baseboard all the way around the room (sometimes we use cove behind the cabinets).   When flooring needs replaced, we can do so by simply removing the toe-kick (which snap in-place) and temporarily removing the legs from the lower boxes (allowing them to hang from the wall) while we change the floor.   Though often it is just as easy to remove the countertops and lower cabinets (rails stay in-place); change the floor, then set the cabinets back in-place).

If we are using pedestal cabinets, we will install the pedestal framing directly on the subfloor and, after the cabinets and flooring are installed, use the toe-kick to pinch the loose-lay flooring.

If we are tiling or refinishing existing wood floors (in period buildings), the floors always run wall-to-wall under the cabinetry regardless of type.  It has been our experience that such floors last as long (or longer) than cabinetry in rental units.

One big advantage of running the finish floor wall-to-wall is it does a much better job of containing water spills and mitigates water that runs under the cabinets (think leaky dishwasher) from seeping under the finish floor. 

@Alena Nicole

We've installed several Ikea kitchens in the past couple of years ... most retrofitted into century old apartment buildings and are aimed at a mid-level market.  As such loose-lay vinyl, linoleum, or vinyl plank are the flooring we use (unless we retain the original pine or hardwood floors). Tile would be in our higher end units where the underlaying subfloor can provide sufficient stability.

In these installations, we always lay the finish floor before installing the cabinets (at least the lowers).  Similarly, you paint the walls before installing the finish floor and cabinets.

Scott:

Due to the nature of privacy laws in Canada, such lists are going to be rare and, if you find one, inaccurate. 

If you want to blanket a neighbourhood based upon postal codes, Canada post has targeted marketing programs.