In this issue:
- UPDATE: New increased land transfer duties scheduled for real estate in Montréal, Province of Québec.
- Review of Lease Accounting for Real Estate
- 2011 Year-End Requires Consideration of Property Tax Matters
- Case Comment: Antrim Truck Centre Ltd. v. Ontario (Minister of Transportation), [2011] O.J. No. 2451 (Ont. C.A.).
UPDATE: New increased land transfer duties scheduled for real estate in Montréal, Province of Québec.
By: Laurent Roy
In the June 2010 edition of the Real Estate & Urban Development @ Gowlings newsletter we reported on the amendments to the Act respecting duties on transfer of immoveables and its effect of allowing the City of Montréal to increase the amount of transfer tax imposed on real estate. To review the June 2010 article please click here.
Please note that by the adoption of its 2012 municipal budget on December 13, 2011, the City of Montréal has indicated that as of January 1, 2012, the land transfer duties for the transfer of an immovable situated within its territory shall be calculated in accordance with the following rates:
- on that part of the basis of imposition which does not exceed $50,000: 0.5%;
- on that part of the basis of imposition which is in excess of $50,000 without exceeding $250,000: 1%;
- on that part of the basis of imposition which is in excess of $250,000 without exceeding $500,000:1.5%;
- on that part of the basis of imposition which is in excess of $500,000 without exceeding $1,000,000:2%; and
- on that part of the basis of imposition which exceeds $1,000,000:2.5%.
To illustrate the impact of this new by-law, the $206,000 transfer duties for a $10,500,000 immovable applicable in 2011 will increase to $253,500.
If you have any questions, please contact your Gowlings real estate professional.
Review of Lease Accounting for Real Estate
By: Michael Garellek
This article provides an important review of current and proposed lease accounting rules from the point of view of landlords and tenants of real estate property.
Read the full article - Review of Lease Accounting for Real Estate
2011 Year-End Requires Consideration of Property Tax Matters
By: David C.K. Tang
December can be a busy month for businesses and individuals. This article suggests that you consider one additional matter: your property taxes. December 31, 2011 is a deadline for dealing with at least one property tax issue which you may have put off until now. As with most property tax deadlines, failure to take action within a deadline can be absolutely final and fatal with respect to 2011 taxes. The year-end also is a good time to look at possible appeals and applications which need to be made in the first quarter of 2012.
Read the full article - 2011 Year-End Requires Consideration of Property Tax Matters
Case Comment: Antrim Truck Centre Ltd. v. Ontario (Minister of Transportation), [2011] O.J. No. 2451 (Ont. C.A.).
By: John Doherty and Roberto Aburto
Can a property owner operating a successful truck stop for many years, from whom no land is taken, claim for damages to the market value of its' land when a public highway project re-design diverts the traffic 2 km away, thereby interfering with its common law right of access to the roadway? In principle, the answer is yes, but a recent Ontario Court of Appeal (the "Court") judgment has further tightened an already narrow basis for such claims arising under the Expropriations Act (the "Act"), and concludes that such actions by the Ministry of Transportation ("MTO") did not constitute a nuisance at law.
Read the full article - Case Comment: Antrim Truck Centre Ltd. v. Ontario (Minister of Transportation), [2011] O.J. No. 2451 (Ont. C.A.).
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
