News and Resources for
Canadian Buyers of Arizona Real Estate
Real Estate Associates Now Must
Verify ID of Buyers and Sellers and Track Deposits
Calgary, June 25 / CNW
New federal laws and regulations
dealing with money laundering and anti-terrorist financing that went into effect
on June 23, 2008 will require real estate associates and brokers to collect and
verify more personal information from buyers and sellers. Real estate associates
must also now track the source of funds received during the course of a real
estate transaction, such as the deposit.
These new regulations are part of federal legislation (Bill C-25) passed in 2007
that requires a number of industries, including real estate, to do more to help
stop money laundering and terrorist financing. The regulations are enforced by
the federal agency known as the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis
Centre of Canada, or FINTRAC.
"Real estate associates have had legal obligations under the federal
government's push to combat criminal activity and terrorism since 2001, when
Canada's first laws to combat money laundering and terrorist financing were
introduced," says the President of the Canadian Real Estate Association, Calvin
Lindberg.
"In the first phase of compliance, real estate associates were required to
report only suspicious transactions or transactions involving more than $10,000
in cash" the CREA President explains. "Now, verified personal information
records must be kept of the buyer and seller for each and every real estate
transaction in Canada. That personal information includes details such as
occupation."
Real estate associates are now required to ask for proof of the identity of all
buyers or sellers involved in a Canadian real estate transaction. If the client
is a corporation, that information must include corporate
documentation, and the names of the corporation directors. Real estate
associates must also ascertain whether a third party is involved in the
transaction.
This identification requirement also applies if a buyer or seller involved in a
transaction is not represented by a real estate associate, but the other
individual involved is represented. Those buying or selling privately will be
asked by the associate representing the other individual involve to provide
personal information and proof of identity as well, and that record must also be
kept by the real estate associate involved in the transaction.
Also under the new FINTRAC regulations, real estate associates dealing with
clients they never meet must also verify their personal information. One way to
do this is for the broker office to hire an associate or mandatary in the area
where the client is located. That associate or mandatary must then meet the
client, verify the identification of the client, and provide the information to
the broker office actually handling the real estate transaction.
"There are buyers, sellers or investors from other countries who rely on
expertise here rather than visiting the property themselves" the CREA President
explains. "They must now meet with an official agent of the Canadian broker, and
provide proof of identity. This agreement will add to the business costs of the
Canadian real estate broker."
The new regulations also require real estate associates to identify any third
party that may be involved in the real estate transaction. This may be more
common in a commercial or investment transaction, but the law says the
identification information must be recorded if there is a third party involved
no matter what type of property involved.
In addition to all the verification of id requirements, real estate associates
must also complete a report on the receipt of all funds received during the real
estate transaction, not just those of $10,000 or more. In order to comply with
these ne w federal regulations, REALTORS(R) are required to keep this
identification and receipt of funds information on file for five years and
provide it to FINTRAC if requested. It is the individual broker office that will
be responsible for the safe keeping of the information, and the brokerage that
will have to respond to any FINTRAC information request.
"Our 5700 members are prepared to deal with these new legislative changes, and
our Board has been keeping them as updated as possible on this file, and we will
continue to support them through whatever means necessary to ensure that they
have an easier time explaining these new changes in the real estate transaction
to consumers," said Calgary Real Estate Board President Ed Jensen.
"Our main focus is always the
consumer and ensuring that they have the smoothest and most satisfying real
estate transaction possible," ended Jensen.
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US Home Prices Drop to Record Low
by Melissa Gonzalo - Jun. 24, 2008 05:14 PM
12 News
The ASU W.P. Carey School of Business reported that
between March of 2007 and March of 2008 Valley home sales dropped double digits
for the first time ever. According to the report, home prices in Central Phoenix
declined 14.4 percent. In southwest Phoenix, they dropped 22.9 percent.
Northwest Valley home prices fell 19 percent, and in the southeast Valley they
fell 13.8 percent. "The market is bad," said ASU real estate professor Karl
Guntermann. "It is deteriorating, and there's nothing I see in the data,
unfortunately, that we're close to a bottom."
Home prices in 20 cities across the country also showed a double digit decline.
"I also own a home on the island of Maui, which currently isn't in the best
condition. It's lost probably about 36 percent," said Surprise resident John
Robbins. It may be bad news for Robbins, for it's good news for buyers.
Monique Walker of Intero Real Estate said the number of Valley homes on the
market is starting to drop, as home sales rise. "Sellers are getting a little
bit more motivated," said Walker. "They're pricing their houses to sell now."
And that translates into great deals. "We just bought a condo back up here in
the Arcadia area for about half of what it originally sold for a year and a half
ago," said Loren Pyper.
Experts said new homeowners are now being asked to put down at least 5 percent
and have pretty good credit. As for the Scottsdale area, homeowners there
weren't as affected. Their prices only went down 4.3 percent from last March to
this March.
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US Dollar Slips As
Traders Cut Back Bets The Fed Will Hike Next Week
Wednesday, 18 June 2008 23:13:13 GMT
Written by Terri Belkas, Currency Analyst and Abhigyan Chakraborty,
DailyFX.com
The US dollar fell across the board during a choppy trading session, with the
New Zealand dollar gaining the most, as the currency hit a high of 0.7596,
followed by the Australian dollar, which rose to 0.9471. Meanwhile, the Canadian
dollar rise towards the end of the trading session as investors await inflation
data due to be released tomorrow. The euro and British pound rose against the
greenback as well, as the former tested resistance at 1.5535 and the latter
rallied toward 1.9600. The Japanese yen continued on its bullish run, as the
USD/JPY pair fell below the 108 mark.
Economic data confirmed a continuing slump in the US housing market, as MBA
mortgage applications fell 8.8%. High borrowing costs discouraged potential and
existing homeowners from attaining mortgages, as foreclosure levels continue to
rise. ABC Consumer Confidence figures showed signs of improvement however it
still stayed near low, as consumers remain worried about high gas prices, and a
general increase in overall price level.
The stock market was plagued with bad news, as the Dow Jones Average hit a three
month low of 12029.06, dipping 131 points and the broader S&P 500 index dropped
13.12 points to 1337.81. Market participants digested disappointing earnings
reports, as FedEx Corps reports losses, due to rising transportation costs, and
Morgan Stanley reported a 60% decline in their 2nd quarter earnings. Financials
took a beating, as Fifth Third Bancorp planned to raise $1 billion in additional
equity. Rising oil prices took a toll on market sentiment, as oil futures rose
to $ 136/bbl. S&P 500 dropped 13.12 points to 1337.81.
Demand for Treasury bonds rose on the weak US housing data, as the news helped
cool speculation that the Federal Reserve will raise rates next week. As a
result, the yield on the benchmark 10-year and 2-year notes fell to the lowest
level in four days, to 4.14% and 2.85% respectively.
Looking ahead, tomorrow’s US unemployment figures should set the tone for the
trading session, as any unexpected deviations could have severe impact on
markets. Also, the Philadelphia Fed and Leading Indicators figures should help
indentify if the economy is experiencing a further deterioration.
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