01How much property transfer tax will I pay in BC?
When I laid out the province’s rates in November 2025, it was 1% on the first $200,000, 2% from $200,000 to $2 million and 3% from $2 million to $3 million, with an extra bump that makes the slice above $3 million effectively 5%. On a new home you stack GST on top of that. For a lot of buyers that’s the difference between we can do this and we cannot, so run the number before you write an offer, and check with your accountant or lawyer for today’s rules.
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02Is there a transfer tax break for first-time buyers?
Yes. In March 2024 I covered the province raising the first-time buyer exemption on a resale home from $500,000 to $835,000, which I worked out as a saving of about $8,000. When I covered it again in June 2026, the full exemption reached $835,000 with partial relief up to $860,000, which lined up well with where entry-level condo prices had landed. Check with your accountant or lawyer for today’s rules before you count on it.
03Do presales and purpose-built rentals get a transfer tax break?
When I went through the 2024 changes in May 2024, the exemption on newly built homes went over $1.1 million, and higher again for purpose-built rentals. In March 2024 I explained the rental exemption as a building of at least four units held as a purpose-built rental for a minimum of 10 years, starting January 1, 2025 and running to December 31, 2030. The details were still being written at the time, so check with your accountant or lawyer for today’s rules.
04Do I pay GST when I buy a home in Vancouver?
Only on new construction or a home that’s been substantially renovated, which is why most resale buyers never see it. On new it’s 5% of the full price, on top of transfer tax on the full amount, so when I ran a $1.2 million new condo in November 2025 the GST alone was about $60,000. It also applies to an assignment of a unit that hasn’t been lived in, which surprises people. Check with your accountant or lawyer for today’s rules.
05Do first-time buyers get a break on GST?
When I covered it in March 2025, the new prime minister had just announced cutting the GST for first-time buyers on new homes under $1 million. Near that price it saves around $50,000, which is great, but in Vancouver that mostly gets you a condo, not a family home, since GST only applies to new construction. I said then it should be a sliding scale based on local prices, and the details can change, so check with your accountant or lawyer for today’s rules.
Run the numbersBC real estate calculatorsMortgage payments, transfer tax, closing costs and more, built for British Columbia.Open the calculators →06Can foreign buyers purchase in Vancouver once the ban ends?
When I covered it in October 2026, the federal ban, in force since January 1, 2023 and extended in February 2024, was set to expire January 1, 2027 with nothing announced to replace it. But there are two locks on that door: BC’s 20% additional property transfer tax on foreign buyers in Metro Vancouver is completely separate, and Ottawa letting the ban lapse does nothing to it. On a $3 million home that’s $600,000 on top of the regular transfer tax. Take your situation to a real estate lawyer and accountant before you write an offer, not after.
07Will prices jump if foreign buyers come back?
I don’t think so. As I pointed out in October 2026, non-resident ownership in this region before the ban was a real number at the margin, but it was never the market. My bet was that any change would be narrow, likely new construction only, with existing homes left out and the 20% tax staying put. If you’re a Canadian buyer worried January prices you out, I wouldn’t lose sleep over it.
08Who is exempt from the foreign buyer ban?
As I explained in October 2026, the ban never applied to everyone who isn’t a citizen. Permanent residents can buy, there are provisions for certain work permit holders who’ve been working and filing taxes here, and a non-Canadian spouse buying with a citizen or permanent resident is treated differently. The 20% provincial tax has its own separate exemption list, and being exempt from one has never meant being exempt from the other, so see a real estate lawyer before you write an offer, because that tax is assessed at completion when it’s too late to restructure.
09What are the speculation, empty homes and flipping taxes?
They’re the ongoing taxes nobody calculates up front, as I covered in November 2025. The BC speculation and vacancy tax can apply to a vacant property or second home at a rate that depends on your residency and use, Vancouver’s empty homes tax can apply if a home in the city sits vacant more than six months of the year, and both can hit you every year, not once. The BC home flipping tax targets homes sold within two years of purchase, up to 20% of your profit in year one and less in year two, so check with your accountant or lawyer for today’s rules before you buy something you might sell quickly.
10Do I pay capital gains tax when I sell my home?
Not on your principal residence. When I compared renting and buying in December 2025, I pointed out that the growth on your principal residence is tax-free in Canada, while half of a stock market gain is taxable when you sell. On an investment property, as I explained in June 2024, the gain is what you sold for minus your adjusted cost base, meaning what you paid plus related expenses, and at that time 50% of the gain was included in taxable income. Your accountant should confirm the rules that apply to you today.
