Joannah Connolly
Other
As British Columbians flock to vacation homes for the long BC day weekend, the dream of the family-owned cabin is slipping out of the reach of the younger generation, according to a BlueShore Financial survey released July 29.
Of those respondents who own a vacation property, only 39% said that their children will inherit the family property.
And in an exactly correlating figure, 61% of respondents whose parents own recreational property don’t think that property will be passed down to them.
BlueShore said that the number one concern parents have about leaving the family vacation home to their children is long-term affordability of maintenance and taxes.
“The dream of inheriting the family cabin is moving beyond the reach of many people,” said Chris Catliff, president and CEO of BlueShore Financial.
“Our survey shows that parents are worried their kids can’t afford to keep up their recreational property. Given that so many recreational properties have a huge emotional investment, this is an important issue for families.”
The survey report also said there was a lack of planning among property owners who do hope to transfer ownership to their children, with more than half (56%) not having a plan for transferring ownership. And even when they do have a plan, most (54%) haven’t discussed details with their children.
“People may not realize what their options are for transferring property to other family members,” said Catliff. “By getting some good advice now, they may be able to keep the cabin in the family for future generations.”
© 2014 Real Estate Weekly
