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Ontario Homeowners Express Their Concern About the Property Tax System

Despite Government's Band-Aid Solution, Thousands of Home and Cottage Owners Will Be Unfair Victims as Market Values Skyrocket

May 28, 2008

TORONTO, ON - Ontario home and cottage owners have begun to let their elected officials know that they are unhappy with the provincial property tax system - even as they wait for a new round of property assessments that could see increases of as much as 150% in the value of their properties.

Hundreds of homeowners have already signed onto a petition set up by the Coalition After Property Tax reform (CAPTR) and Waterfront Ratepayers After Fair Taxation (WRAFT), which will be delivered to Queen's Park later in the year. (The petitions are available on the two organizations' websites: www.captr.org and www.wraft.com .) Countless others have written letters to their MPPs, with copies to CAPTR and WRAFT:

"We have been hit with unmanageable tax increases and our income is not increasing at the rate of increase in taxes," says a letter from a couple in Innisfil Township. "We are retired and do not want to sell our property but may be forced to. We would like to leave our [property] to our children but are afraid they will not be able to afford it."

From a gentleman in Unionville:

"My brother and I have built with our own hands a very modest cabin on a piece of land that was bought by our great grandfather over 100 years ago. We are not wealthy and like many of the summer residents struggle just to maintain our cottages. We consider our cottage to be a family heritage to be passed on to future generations... Our taxes are increasing faster than our income while services are decreasing. We support the local year round community and believe we are valuable contributing members. I hope that Ontario is not moving in the direction of making cottage ownership an option only for the wealthy."

From another couple in Innisfil Township:

"We are not cash cows. We do not want to sell our property, but will now be forced to do so; and certainly our children would never be able to carry the load. What a shame, after so many years of family history[...] and contribution to the area's economy."

From a homeowner in Lakefield:

"I am retired and have lived at my home for 17 years. My house is close to the water but not waterfront as the former village retains ownership of the property between me and the water. My assessment has gone from $258,000 in 2004 to 307,000 [and undoubtedly higher in 2008]. I cannot afford another huge assessment increase. I do not own waterfront property but am treated as though I do."

Recognizing that the system is imperfect, the Government of Ontario has changed the property assessment cycle to occur once every four years. Percentage increases in assessment values will then be spread out evenly over those four years, to help defray property tax increases. But even at that, some homeowners will pay substantially higher taxes - and many homeowners believe that this "solution" doesn't solve the problem:

"The present system of review of assessment every 4 years with subsequent inordinate increases places an unbearable financial burden on retirees like me," says a homeowner in Magnetewan.

A gentleman from Unionville:

"The taxing of unrealized gains is unfair, and unlike any other form of taxation in Canada. The four year assessment cycle and four year phase-in is not an acceptable solution as it fails to resolve the fundamental problem of unpredictability for the tax payers. Only a cap on assessment increases can deal with the volatility of our current system."

A couple from Flesherton:

"A 4 year cycle doesn't fix the unfairness, doesn't stop the double-digit assessment increases, nor does it stop the enormous property tax pain inflicted on Ontario property owners. If your assessment increased 45% causing your taxes to increase more than 25% in the 2 year cycle, what's to stop your assessment increasing 90% and taxes being hiked 50% in the 4 year cycle? As Ontario property owners, we agree with both CAPTR and WRAFT; the proposed 4 year cycle will not fix the system, it just prolongs the volatility of double-digit property tax increases."

"These comments are just a very small sample of the kind of frustration and uncertainty that Ontario property owners are facing," says Bob Topp, Executive Director of CAPTR.

"Once the new assessments start arriving in mailboxes this Fall, we expect there'll be a deluge of unhappy homeowners - people who don't want to sell their homes, even if the values have gone up, people who don't believe they should be forced to pay higher taxes than others with similar homes, just because of where they happen to live."

"The system is clearly flawed," says Terry Rees, a Director of WRAFT. "We can only hope that the growing backlash from property owners helps the Government understand this, and gets some real reform under way."

For more information:
Bob Topp
CAPTR
416-929-2885

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