Recorded Webinar: A New Dance Partner - GST Implications of Purchaser Substitution

With tightening rules on bank lending and increased taxes on foreign buyers, developers are seeing an uptick in the number of transactions where the initial purchaser is looking to pull out of a sale contract or to substitute an unrelated third party. This session reviews the potential GST consequences of such transactions, including:

• If the initial purchaser outlays an amount to the vendor, how is it to be characterised and what is the GST treatment?
  • forfeited deposits
  • compensation payment
  • incentive to accept step-in purchaser
• Incentives paid to step-in purchaser to acquire property and its GST treatment where:
  • paid by initial purchaser
  • paid by vendor
  • reduced purchase price
  • increased supply (e.g. extra car park) for same purchase price
• Commissions received by real estate agent or another third-party facilitator