Fraser Valley Real Estate Board chair weighs in on prov. budget
Published 9:30 pm Friday, February 20, 2026
Tore Jacobsen, chair of the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board and managing broker with McDonald Realty, said he and the board are still digging into the new provincial budget but noted some of the things the government has chosen to add tax to, or add tax increases on, is going to drive up prices.
“We’re still digging into it, but certainly the addition of PST to a number of real estate related services it’s not going to help,” Jacobsen said. “On the surface, our initial reaction is that additions of PST for those various services, be it architecture and other things like that, it just is going to have an impact. To what degree? Don’t know yet. We’re still digesting it.”
He added when the real estate boards, under the B.C. Real Estate Association, head to Victoria for their annual government liaison days, they will present the government with any concerns they have related to the budget. He said they will obviously look at the situation in the context of real estate and housing.
“There are struggles already in terms of housing projects being put on hold, or not started at all, so in that context, what is the new (budget) going to do in that respect?”
Jacobsen said while there is a lot of concern about the budget and the new taxes and how that will affect people in the province, he cautioned that they need to fully read through the budget and give it a “fulsome analysis” before making any major statements about it.
“I think there’s been a propensity in the past to do things that way, a little bit reactive, and then all the sudden we realize the collateral from that and then we reverse.”
Jacobsen said after a deep dive into the budget, they will have more to say.
“We’ll take our time at the front end, have those discussions, find out what works based on the factors that are needed, and then just simply educate British Columbians on why that decision was made.”