May 5th - 2009

Opposition to sales tax harmonization is strong

The McGuinty governments plan to harmonize the GST and PST is hitting a wall of opposition built by REALTORS®.

The McGuinty governments plan to harmonize the GST and PST is hitting a wall of opposition built by REALTORS®. In April, OREA issued an RPAC Call-for-Action that, by press time, had stirred over 13,000 real estate professionals and consumers to send E-mails opposing the plan to MPPs at Queen’s Park.

OREA also took action, issuing two press releases on Budget 2009 and REALTOR® opposition to the proposal of harmonized sales taxes. These press releases received considerable print and electronic media coverage and were mentioned on numerous occasions in Question Period and debates at the Ontario Legislature.

Resale homes to take a hit
The McGuinty governments plan to harmonize the GST and PST will add over $2,000 to the cost of a real estate transaction, hurting the resale home market and prolonging the housing industry’s recovery from the current economic downturn.

“Now is not the time to be erecting barriers to homeownership,” said OREA President Pauline Aunger. “We need consumers to invest in housing to help get our economy going again.”

According to the Canadian Real Estate Association, home sales in the province of Ontario were down 29 per cent in February, compared to 2008.

Under a harmonized sales tax (HST), home buyers and sellers will have to pay extra tax on a range of services associated with real estate transactions such as legal fees, moving costs, real estate commissions and home inspection fees. Currently, consumers only pay the 5% Goods and Services Tax (GST) on these services.

“These additional taxes could price some homebuyers, especially first-time homebuyers, right out of the market,” explained Aunger. “Harmonizing will not help homebuyers in any way.”

For a resale house priced at $360,000, a HST could add over two thousand dollars in new taxes to closing costs. In total, a HST will add $313 million annually in new taxes to resale home transactions.

Ontario’s real estate industry is essential to the provincial economy. In 2008, real estate in Ontario accounted for $56.6 billion in sales, $6.01 billion in ancillary economic spending and $1.35 billion4 in land transfer tax revenue to the provincial government. In addition, real estate employs 110,000 Ontarians directly and indirectly.

Home energy audits may gut affordability
OREA issued a Call-for-action in April, stirring REALTORS® and consumers to voice their displeasure with the proposal for mandatory home energy audits. This is one of several actions to get the McGuinty Government to rethink this proposal.

The opposition continued with presentations by the Sault Ste. Marie Real Estate Board, the London and St. Thomas Association of REALTORS® and the Ottawa Real Estate Board to the Standing Committee on General Government which held a clause by clause review of the proposed legislation.

OREA also met with the Premier’s Director of Policy to discuss the impact mandatory home energy audits will have on real estate and the real estate market.

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For more information contact

Ontario Real Estate Association

Jean-Adrien Delicano

Manager, Media Relations

JeanAdrienD@orea.com

416-445-9910 ext. 246

Ontario Real Estate Association
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