British Columbia Property Purchase Tax

The following information should help you to calculate property purchase tax in British Columbia. Please remember we provide this for informational purposes only and we recommend that you speak with a professional (i.e. your lawyer or banker).

To calculate the total British Columbia Property Purchase Tax for residential properties, add the following together:

1% on the first $200,000 of the purchase price

2.0% of the amount in excess of $200,000
OR use the following table

Purchase Price Calculation of Property Purchase Tax
0 - 200,000 .01 x Amount
200,001 + (.02 x Amount) minus 2,000

First time home buyers are exempt from property transfer tax if the property is less than $375,000 and you are a Canadian resident.

GST

GST (Goods and Services Tax) does not generally apply on resale residential property, unless it was previously used as a business. For example, GST DOES apply on many of the condos at Red Mountain, which were owned by corporations and rented out short-term accommodation. In this case, it is possible to set up your own corporation and defer the GST to the next buyer, and continue to run it as a business.

If you are buying a newly built property, GST will apply. If it is going to be your primary place of residence, you can apply for a partial GST refund.

Home Buyer's Plan

If you are a first-time home buyer, you can also withdraw up to $20,000 from your RRSP to help with the down payment.

Municipal and Regional Property Tax

In general (and this is a very rough rule of thumb, not to be considered accurate), in Rossland you can expect to pay property tax each year that is 1.1% of the assessed value of the property, if you are living in it. For example:

Property Value ..Tax Payable

200,000............2200

375,000............4125

450,000............4950

600,000............6600

So - if you purchase a house at a much higher price than it was previously assessed, don't be fooled by the existing tax amount, as you are likely to be re-assessed closer to the new purchase price. If you want to find out more info, contact BC Assessment and Rossland City Hall.