As you may already know, on January 1^st , the Prohibition on the Purchase of Residential Property by Non-Canadians Act and regulations came into force for a period of 2 years.  What many of you may not know is that it can affect the purchase of vacant or commercial land for development purposes by Canadian corporations or entities where a non-Canadian owns as little as 3% of the equity.   Here is a good primer prepared by a Real Estate Lawyer in Toronto – https://www.robinsappleby.com/resources/publications/details/federal-foreign-buyer-legislation-prohibits-purchase-of-existing-homes-and-vacant-residential-land?_cldee=lzbDzbo0DghN9Ad7WT36ls-vkkS4WlcqOcBxMRqfLbTYUhmIo_Qb0ul50TpOwPPn&recipientid=contact-2a645b2c242cec11b6e60022483c6398-52042483b7a44d429dceb2122863c441&utm_source=ClickDimensions&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=BILD%20News%20Email%20Campaigns&esid=834b8055-688b-ed11-81ad-0022483dda31

Although this issue is currently being advocated through the Canadian Home Builder Association and in Toronto through the Building Industry Land Development Association, it may impact a number of our members, and we’re trying to build awareness of the issue.  Right now the Minister of Finance is asking CHBA to canvas its member to assess who it is impacting.  The largest concerns are that the legislation released last summer was very vague and did not address the 3% control provision that we saw roll out a couple of days before the holiday break.   In addition, the Act initially focused on private corporations, but the regulations roped in all other entities such as REITs.  The regulations have not incorporated a carve-out for publicly  traded entities on recognized stock exchanges that was afforded to corporations.

Should you have any questions on the legislation/regulations that have just been released, or you would like to join in on the advocacy work, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Leona Savoir

GR Co-Chair for the Greater Toronto Chapter