Canadians facing huge increase in property tax this year

Canadians are facing a huge increase in property taxes this year.

Toronto homeowners will see their biggest increase yet in the series as the city proposed a 10.5 per cent increase in property taxes in the budget and warned that property taxes could rise to 16.5 per cent if funding for refugee support is not forthcoming from the federal government. Meanwhile, property taxes in Montreal are going up about 5 percent this year.

This is the biggest increase in the 13-year history of the city. On the other hand, the property tax in Vancouver is currently 7.5 percent after increasing by 10.7 percent last year. In Halifax it is going to increase by about 10 per cent. Sasha Tsenkova, a professor at the University of Calgary, said that this year is indeed challenging.

She said municipalities are struggling to meet more expenses amid inflation. Homeowners in Toronto are paying slightly more in taxes than other municipalities.

Toronto politicians argue that Toronto is larger than some provincial municipalities, requiring dedicated federal funding because the city has no other source of revenue.