Dear Editor,
Re: “Market cools but realtors differ on trend,” News, Aug. 24.
Steveston realtor Sean Lawson commented that the government dropped a bomb on realtors and contractors by instituting the 15 per cent tax on foreign investors.
The comment I would like to make to Mr. Lawson’s claim is, “Too bad.”
For the past two to three years, Richmond residents watched homes being torn down and replaced with mega houses, mainly purchased by foreign buyers parking their money here.
In addition, they’ve watched realtors shadow-flipping, while others simply needed to show up and to watch multiple buyers getting into bidding wars, often at 10-20 per cent over the asking price.
So, are we actually supposed to feel sorry for those realtors and contractors who seem only concerned about their own incomes, and often care less what happens to our communities, or whether young families can ever afford to purchase here?
I don’t think so! It’s about time the brakes were put on. Maybe a moratorium on foreign buying could have been an alternative solution, as they (partially) did in Australia. But at least this new tax has slowed the insanity here.
Whether the real estate market takes off again in September or not, we will have to wait and find out.
R. Lewis
Richmond
