Friday, March 26, 2010

HST and Resale Real Estate

Many potential home buyers and sellers have been worried about the implications of the HST which kicks in as of July 1, 2010. In fact, no HST will be applicable on the purchase price of a resale home. Some ancillary services, however, will be subject to the new tax. Sellers will have to pay 13% HST on real estate commissions and legal fees associated with selling. Buyers will pay 13% HST on their lawyer's fees and things like house appraisals or status certificates on a condo. But the bulk of the expense - the purchase price, is not taxable. The implications, therefore, for home buyers of resale homes, are not huge. Certainly no reason to panic or rush a decision to purchase your home.

Thursday, March 25, 2010

When a Non-profit closes its doors

I just had a question from an accountant friend of mine who asked me the following: a nonprofit client is shutting down its operations and it has a suplus. Where does the surplus go? The answer is "it depends". If the non-profit is a registered charity - the surplus should go to another registered charity. The articles or by-laws of a corporate charity may indicate what sort of charity (usually similar in nature) the proceeds will be disbursed to. If the organization is a nonprofit but not a charity, the proceeds can be disbersed to its members, unless its articles or by-laws stipulate otherwise. Of course this is just Ontario law, folks! Every jurisdiction has different rules.

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Barrie Senior Awards

Do you know an exceptional senior in Barrie? Nominate them for an award for their community service at http://bit.ly/cqa2JI

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Can't Pay the Rent?

In these economic times I have, unfortunately, had a few clients who have been struggling to continue to make their monthly lease payments on their commercial or industrial space. When they call, I usually give them this advice: let's call the landlord. The most practical piece of advice a lawyer can give in these situations, in my opinion, is to keep the lines of communication open. Sure the landlord wants to get paid, but he may also be willing to negotiate with you, over the short term, in order to keep you as a long term tenant. Often, the last thing he wants is to have to look for a new tenant. Of course, every situation is different, and yes, sometimes landlords are just waiting for the opportunity to distrain a tenant's goods and lock them out, but if your business has always paid its rent on time, and you are simply in need of a little flexibility to get you over a short-term hurdle, a phone call to the landlord can't hurt. We have had some success in negotiating alternative rental arrangements to get clients through hurdles. Letting the landlord know that you want to pay the rent, and asking him for a plan to make that happen, can be an up-front and straight-forward approach, and an excellent alternative to simply ignoring his calls and not paying your rent on time.