When will they axe this tax?

Chilliwack Progress

As any non-first-time homebuyer can attest, rising house prices aren’t the only hurdle in making a move. Each time the assessed value of a house rises — and in many B.C. cities the increase in recent years has been stupendous – the market value follows. And each time more money is paid for a home, the provincial government adds hundreds of millions to its coffers via its property-transfer tax, a tax that is nothing more than a cash grab for Victoria. This tax is onerous and unnecessary in its creation and in its implementation. Unlike municipal property taxes, the provincial property-transfer tax is not adjusted each time property values skyrocket.No, every time housing prices rise, the provincial government gets fatter. But it could be worse; we could be living in Toronto.Like B.C., Ontario imposes a tax on home buyers.

There, buyers pay a 0.5 per cent tax on the first $55,000 of their purchase price, followed by a one per cent tax on the amount between $55,000 and $250,000, a 1.5 per cent tax on the amount between $250,000 and $400,000 and a two per cent tax on the amount in excess of $400,000.For example, you would pay $6,475 to the Ontario government for the right to buy a $500,000 home. Ah, but if you live in the Centre of the Universe, otherwise known as the Largest American City in Canada, also known as Toronto, you will pay an extra $5,725 thanks to a brand new land transfer tax approved by Toronto city council.That’s $12,200 to two levels of government in Ontario for one transaction.

In B.C., a similar tax grab on a $500,000 home will see you pay $8,000 to Victoria for the right to engage in a private land deal. Toronto city council expects the new tax to bring in $300 million in annual revenue as it tackles a city budget of about $8.1 billion — yes, that’s billion with a B.But let’s keep this terrible Toronto tax plan a secret – lest some here get wind of it and decide it might work.

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Don Quixote Note: At a recent Vernon Council meeting a resolution supporting a resolution Letter dated January 28, 2008, from Kerri Lore, Deputy City Clerk to Hon. Carole Taylor, Minister of Finance, re: Municipal Fiscal Imbalance. (P. 171). This was sent to the Provincial Government asking that the municipalities share in the B.C. Provincial Government's tax grab.