While the provincial government rolled out a tax on speculation and expanded the foreign buyers tax outside Metro Vancouver a real estate expert says the move might benefit Kamloops.
With the tax is set to be in place for the entire lower mainland, Nanaimo, southern Vancouver Island, and the central Okanagan it does not apply to Kamloops.
The Chief Economist for the BC Real Estate Association Cameron Muir says with no foreign buyers tax or speculation tax it could make Kamloops and the surrounding area more attractive to buyers both domestic and foreign.
“From Alberta buyers you have large contingents of buyers who are well heeled from Alberta who are buying in the Okanagan as well as the Kootenays. There is also all sorts of Albertans who look to British Columbia and its certainly a much more favourable climate and favourable stylesand amenities attract many recreation buyers from Alberta and other parts of Canada.”
The speculation tax will be applied annually and will rise to 2% on the assessed value of homes once it is fully up and running next year.