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Whistler Real Estate Expert Dean Linnell welcomes you to Whistler BC Canada.
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Whistler Purchaser's Checklist
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Now that you’ve purchased a property at Whistler here is a
checklist of some of the issues that you will want to address
to ensure that the ownership of the property transitions to
yourself smoothly.
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Have you opened a Canadian Bank account and arranged
automatic withdrawals of required payments (see below)?
Provide the details of the account to your property manager
so they may deposit revenue to this account.
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Have you discussed with the property manager as to what
your responsibilities are with respect to your unit and
what bills they will be paying on your behalf (see below)?
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BC Hydro - Quite often it is necessary
for you to apply for the hydro service to be issued in
your name even if the billing is going to be forwarded
to the property manager. You can contact BC Hydro at
1 800 224-9376.
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Cable Television - You can contact
Whistler Cable at (604) 932-1111.
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Telephone - You can contact TELUS at
1 888 811 2323.
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Strata Corporation Maintenance Fees -
These are payable monthly and arrangements can usually be
made with your property manager to pay these on your
behalf, or you can arrange for an automatic debit from
your account with the Strata Corporation’s management
company.
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Tourism Whistler Fees - These are
quarterly fees payable the first of January, April,
June and September. The amount of the fees will depend
on your use of the unit. Should you not be planning on
renting it out you will be entitled to pay a lower rate
of Tourism Whistler fees and you will have to provide a
Statutory Declaration as to your intended use. You can
contact Tourism Whistler at (604) 932-3928 to obtain a
Statutory Declaration. If your property manager is not
paying the Tourism Whistler fees on your behalf from
revenue then arrangements can be made for automatic
debits.
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Property Taxes - Both the water bill
and the property taxes are due on July 1st each year,
confirm with your property manager that they are not
going to be paying the property taxes on your behalf
(usually they do not) the property tax bill will mailed
to you at your address as it shows on the title to the
property in June. If the taxes are not paid by the due
date, usually by July 2, there will be a 2% late payment
penalty for the first week and an additional 8% penalty
if it is not paid within 7 days of the due date. There is
a grant available if this property is your principal
residence. The Municipality will provide you the grant
form with the tax notice. If you purchase the property
in the spring the Municipality may send the tax notice
to the previous owner. The Municipality will still charge
you the penalty should the taxes not be paid on time so
it is important to contact the Municipality in June should
you not receive the tax bill. The Municipal tax office
can be contacted at (604) 932-5535.
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Mortgage Payments - Most lenders will
set up automatic debit arrangements for payment of the
monthly mortgage payments and many will, if you wish,
collect and pay your property taxes.
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Non-Resident Withholding Tax - You can
minimize the non-resident withholding tax by completing
an NR6 and submitting it to Canada Customs and Revenue
Agency (CCRA). It will include an undertaking that you
will annually file a tax return related to the property.
Discuss with your property manager whether they will
assist you with the completion of an NR6, if not contact
an accountant.
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Tax Returns - Have you made an
arrangement with an accountant to assist you with the
filing of your annual Canadian tax returns with respect
to the property? The tax return for the year ending
December 31 is due by April 30. Note that expenses related
to the property cannot be claimed after more than two
(2) years have elapsed. So it is important to file
annually.
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GST Returns - Confirm with your property
manager that they are collecting and remitting the GST on
your behalf. It will however be necessary for you to at
least annually file a GST return with CCRA just verifying
the returns made by your property manager. At this time
you may also claim any GST input tax credits such as GST
paid on legal fees or property management fees.
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Insurance - Confirm with the property
manager and the strata corporation exactly what insurance
coverage is in place and what coverage you should be
carrying, typically this will be liability insurance and
in some instances it will be necessary for you to ensure
the furnishings.
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Booking Personal Use - Have you reviewed
the terms of any rental agreements to determine the
notice requirements for booking personal use of the unit
and have you diarized all appropriate dates?
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Canada Customs - Should you intend to
furnish your recreational property with personal effects
from your home outside Canada, you should contact Canada
Customs to determine their requirements to avoid paying
duty on the furnishings. Ordinarily you are permitted to
transport one shipment of used personal effects to a
recreational residence without duty. In order to do so
you will have to provide proof at the border of your
recent purchase of the real estate. The purchase
document required is the registered Form A Transfer.
You can contact our office by telephone to arrange for
it to be faxed to you prior to your arrival at the border.
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