Articles

DO YOU HOLD PROPERTY IN A TRUST, CORPORATION OR PARTNERSHIP?  If so, it is important that you read on… The Land Owner Transparency Registry is a publicly searchable registry of information about beneficial ownership of land in British Columbia. Beneficial land owners are people who own or control land indirectly, such as through a corporation, partnership or trust. Who Is Affected by the November 30, 2022 LOTR Filing Deadline? By November 30, 2022, a Transparency…

For properties owned on December 31, 2018, the tax rate was the same for everyone: 0.5% of the assessed value of your residential property on July 1, 2018, as determined by BC Assessment. B.C. owners are eligible for a tax credit of up to $2,000 on secondary properties to offset their tax payable. The credit is limited to $2,000 per owner and $2,000 per property (in the case of multiple owners) per year. For 2019…

When going through papers or the safety deposit box of your passed loved one, you may come across old share certificates. These can either be worth a lot, or worthless. You can start by researching the company name online. If nothing comes up, it may mean the company changed its name or it’s no longer in business. Try to locate any other information relating to the share certificate, such as the brokerage handling the shares…

Estate Pitfalls & Family Loans There are many issues that can crop up and create family discord when an estate is being administered. A commonly occurring problem is that of outstanding loans to beneficiaries. Many parents who have lent money to their children wish to write wills that take loans into consideration when dividing assets. However, any added complexity can lead to family drama and estate litigation, so it is important to work with a…

An Estate Planning Question When two or more people purchase any property, your realtor or lawyer will ask you how you want your new ownership to be registered. Most couples will choose to register the title in both spouses names and most often as “Joint Tenants”. Registering in “Joint Tenancy” means that if one of the owners dies, the remaining owners acquire the share of the deceased owner automatically. If yours is a first marriage…

Appointing a “Non-Resident” to be your Executor? Think Carefully… Does it matter if your executor is a non-resident of Canada? The answer is definitely, yes – the residence of your executor affects the residence of your estate for income tax purposes. As a result, appointing a non-resident of Canada to be the sole executor of your estate would cause your estate to be a non-resident of Canada too and trigger some potentially negative tax consequences:…

An executor is the individual, individuals or trust company that you make responsible for safeguarding your worldly assets, paying your final debts and ultimately distributing your estate in accordance with your wishes. There is no correct answer as to who should be your executor as it depends upon many such factors as your family dynamic (do your family members get along?), the complexity of your assets (do you own many properties or businesses?), and the…

Estate and Probate Expenses Most people have a sense that when we die there are legal processes that must be followed and that they are often complicated, time consuming and expensive. While it is possible, through careful, prudent estate planning, to reduce or eliminate many of these hurdles the following is a brief primer on the true costs (real and intangible) associated with the administration of an estate after death. The sort of expenses facing…

Every Company incorporated in BC is required by law to file an annual report with the Provincial Corporate Registry. Failure to file for two consecutive years will result in the Company being dissolved. When a private Company is dissolved all of its assets are forfeited to the Government. While the Government rarely acts to collect assets from a dissolved company the cost of “restoring” a company is usually more than it is to incorporate in…

In spite of the recent uncertainty created by the Federal Government regarding small business rules, incorporation remains a simple, inexpensive, and smart foundation for the future of your business as it may provide the following positive features: Personal Asset Protection Advantageous Tax treatment Deductible expenses Income splitting Improve your business image and name protection Attract Investors We provide full Incorporation services, including a detailed review of your goals and how they can be achieved through…