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| Your Dartmouth, Halifax & Area Real Estate Expert |
Call Roz Prince: (902) 456-6375 | Email: rozprince@eastlink.ca |
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Moving Checklist: |
Home Purchase Checklist: |
Send change of address cards to:
___ Post Office
___ Charge Accounts
___ Subscriptions
___ Friends and Relatives
Disconnect utilities:
___ Water
___ Electric
___ Internet: Aliant , Eastlink
___ Cable TV: Eastlink
___ Telephone: Aliant , Eastlink
___ Oil, Propane, Gas:
Cancel deliveries:
___ Milk
___ Newspaper: Chronicle-Herald , The Daily News
___ Oil, Propane, Gas:
Transfer memberships:
___ Church
___ Clubs
___ Civic organizations
Notify lease rental companies:
___ Water tank
___ Furnace
___ Other
Transfer bank accounts:
___ Checking
___ Savings
___ Safety Deposit Box
Notify insurance companies:
___ Health
___ Life
___ Auto
___ Homeowners
Obtain medical records:
___ General Practitioner
___ Dentist
___ Optometrist
___ Other doctors
Miscellaneous:
___ Make arrangements with moving company
___ Obtain school records for children
___ Obtain birth and baptismal records
___ Have drug prescriptions refilled
___ Have car tuned up for trip
___ Collect spare keys |
___ Electricity: Call NSP a week or two before closing.
___ Telephone: Aliant , Eastlink - Call two weeks before closing.
___ Water : Call at least two working days before connection is required. You will be required to sign a contract and pay a service fee.
___ Oil, Propane, Gas:
___ Cable TV: Eastlink ___ Insurance: Before the closing date, you are required to arrange house insurance.
___ Canada Post
___ Newspaper: Chronicle-Herald ; The Daily News - Stop delivery at previous home and start a new address. ___ Garbage Collection
___Moving Company : Make sure to book well in advance.
___ Metro Transit
___ Schools ( Halifax Regional School Board )
Change your address on the following:
___ Driver's License and Vehicle Registration
___ Credit Cards
___ Banks
___ Magazine Subscriptions
___ Car and Life Insurance
___ Other |
Closing Day Preparations
Closing day refers to the date mutually agreed to by the seller and buyer for the transfer of funds, title and the keys (usually). This can be a stressful time for both parties considering that this may be the largest sale or purchase of a lifetime. A few essential preparations can make the transaction flow smoothly. [ Read more ]
Too much to pack? Why not donate?
Adsum House
2421 Brunswick St., Halifax
Items can be dropped off anytime: textiles, clothing and household items - no big furniture
Beacon House
470 Cobequid Rd, Lower Sackville
Drop-Off bin: used clothing
Bide-A-While Animal Shelter
12 Eaton Av., Dartmouth
Towels only
Big Brothers and Sisters ReNew Crew
6300 Lady Hammond Rd, Suite 900, Halifax
Clothing Bins throughout Metro, household items, clothing, jewellery, luggage, sporting goods, tools, furniture (by arrangement) and more.
Byrony House
Bloomfield Centre, 2786 Agricola St, Halifax
Textiles and clothing
Canadian Diabetes Association
101-6080 Young St, Halifax
Pick-up service: textiles, used clothing, toys, dishes, bedding, sporting goods, costume jewelry, small applicable, knick-knacks, shoes, tools, luggage, draperies, kitchen utensils
Ecology Action Centre - Steer Clean Program
1568 Argyle St, Halifax
steerclean@ecologyaction.ca
www.steerclean.ca
Parts from older vehicles (1993 and prior)
Feed Nova Scotia
213 Bedford Hwy, Halifax
www.feednovascotia.ca
Perishable and non-perishable food items, good office equipment, toiletries, linens, dishes, clothing, inkjet and laser toner cartridges, old cell phones
Hand in Hand, Society of St. Vincent De Paul
436 Herring Cove Rd
Clothing, household and craft items or supplies, small appliances, books, good used furniture
Lake City Employment Services Association
386 Windmill Rd, Dartmouth
Computers and peripherals
Parker Street Furniture Bank
2415 Maynard St, Halifax
Furniture and household items
Phoenix House
2385 Hunter St, Halifax
Textiles and clothing, dishware, donations
Salvation Army
Drop-off boxes available on site as well as pick-up service: Furniture and clothing (no large applicances)
St Margaret's Bay Food Bank
12930 Peggy's Cove Rd, Tantallon
Drop-off boxes on site: Used clothing and flea market items (no furniture)
Single Parent Centre
3 Sylvia Av, Halifax
Infant and maternity clothing only |
Tax Deductable Moving Expenses
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The typical move involves a number of costs including hiring a company to transport personal effects and furniture, hotel stays and meals (if the move involves driving a long distance to a new home), and service fees to disconnect and reconnect utilities. In addition, renters who leave on short notice may have to pay the cost of breaking a lease. Homeowners will incur closing costs and commissions on the sale of their home as well as legal and other fees on the purchase of their new home.
Two groups are eligible to deduct a portion of their moving expenses: students moving away from home to attend school and people moving to a new area for a job or relocation by their employer. There has been a challenge to the rules regarding eligibility for the self-employed as you'll read later in this article.
Revenue Canada includes a tax guide along with its tax forms, however, the guide is not a comprehensive list of allowable deductions, rules, exceptions and explanations. The following is an easy to understand summary.
Note: Please use the following only as a guide; the rules regarding deductions can change. If have any questions or concerns, please visit the Canada Customs and Revenue Agency website for a complete and updated list of deductions: http://www.ccra-adrc.gc.ca/
Students
Students must fulfill two main qualifications: the distance between your home and school must be at least 40km (by the shortest public route) and you must be a full-time student. A full-time student is defined as someone who regularly attends a college, university, or other educational institution in a program at a post-secondary school level (whether in Canada or not) and is taking at least 60% of the usual course load during each semester.
As a student, you can only deduct eligible moving expenses from award income (scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, prizes, and research grants) that you report on your return. Your moving expenses must be greater than your award in order to deduct any moving expenses. As Revenue Canada's website reads, "If your moving expenses are more than the award income you report for the year, you can deduct the unused portion of those expenses from the award."
Although many students will not earn award income and will therefore not be able to deduct moving expenses, tuition fees themselves are a tax deduction. If a student has a part-time job, tuition can reduce taxes paid on those earnings.
Students who meet the qualifications and have received award income can deduct the costs of travel, shipping and transportation of belongings, as well as items listed below under 'Expenses you can deduct'.
Employees
If you are moving for work (e.g. a company relocation or new job), are employed and establish a home at least 40km closer to a new job than your old home, then you qualify to deduct moving expenses. Similarly, if you are self-employed, and you establish a home at least 40km closer to your new operational business than your old home, you also qualify to deduct moving expenses.
According to Revenue Canada, you must establish your new home as the place where you and members of your household ordinarily reside. For example, you have established a new home if you have sold or rented (or advertised for sale or rent) your old home.
Employed and working from home: an exception to the rule
Until recently, employees who work from home and move have faced some restrictions regarding moving expenses. In the court decision Gary Adamson v. the Queen, Mr. Adamson had incurred moving expenses as an employee who was required to provide his own office in his home.
According to a Globe and Mail report on April 5, 2003, Mr. Adamson decided to move to a new home to provide more necessary office space. The court allowed his deduction even though he hadn't started work for a new employer.
Expenses you can deduct:
Travelling expenses, including vehicle expenses, meals, and accommodation, to move you and members of your household to your new residence.
Transportation and storage costs (such as packing, hauling, in-transit storage, and insurance) for household effects, including items such as boats and trailers.
Costs for up to 15 days for meals and temporary accommodation near either residence, for you and the members of your household.
The cost of cancelling a lease for your old residence, except any rental payment for the period during which you occupied the residence.
Legal fees for the purchase of the new residence, as well as any taxes paid (other than GST/HST or property taxes) for the transfer or registration of title to the new residence, if you or your spouse or common-law partner sold the old residence.
The cost of selling your old residence, including advertising, notary or legal fees, real estate commission, and mortgage penalty when the mortgage is paid off before maturity.
Incidental costs related to the move: You can claim the cost of changing your address on legal documents, replacing driving licences and non-commercial vehicle permits (excluding insurance), and utility hook-ups and disconnections.
Expenses that are not deductible:
Expenses for work done to make your home more saleable.
Any loss from the sale of your home.
Expenses for house-hunting trips before you move.
The value of items movers refused to take, such as plants, frozen food, ammunition, paint, and cleaning products.
Expenses for job hunting in another city (such as travelling expenses).
Expenses to clean or repair a rented residence to meet the landlord's standards.
Expenses to replace personal-use items such as tool sheds, firewood, drapes, and carpets.
Mail-forwarding costs.
Costs of transformers or adaptors for household appliances.
Costs incurred in the sale of your old home if you delayed selling for investment purposes or until the real estate market improved.
The preceding list of deductions can save you hundreds, even thousands of dollars on your tax return. Now all that's left to do is figure out what to do with your tax refund!
© Copyright 2006 Sutton Group Financial Services Ltd. |
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