Many Staggering under sharply increased assessed values for Property Tax Purposes

This fall all property owners in Ontario received an assessment notice indicating the new CVA or assessed value for their property, which will be used for 2006 property taxes. The average increase was 12.7% above the last assessment in 2003, but many were substantially more than that. A fair property tax system should not produce values that are volatile and unpredictable to taxpayers.

Currently, property owners do not understand how their assessments are prepared. The system is a black box, driven by formulae, with local knowledge removed.

It taxes unrealized gains, cuts across all income levels and causes severe financial hardship for large numbers of Ontarians, in particular, seniors on fixed income.

There are huge variations in assessment increases within local areas and between individual properties with no apparent cause or explanation. The appeal process is demeaning, confusing to most people and often must be repeated with each assessment.

Property tax pays for education and downloaded social services which many feel should be paid by the province and funded from income tax. A Canadian Federation of Independent Business study showed that Canadians pay a greater percentage of GDP in property taxes than any other nation; and a recent study by a Trent University professor indicates that Ontario residents pay 31% more per capita in property taxes than the Canadian average. So fairness is an important issue to all Ontarians.

In his 2004 Ontario provincial budget, the Minister of Finance promised a review of the system to address taxpayers concerns with assessment volatility and to ensure fairness and suspended the 2004 assessment. This has not yet been done. The recent assessment has shown even more volatility than the previous assessment after which the provincial commitment was made.

A number of Ratepayer Associations have strongly urged the shelving of this 2005 reassessment, pending this review. The Ontario Ombudsman is also reviewing the MPAC approach in response to many concerns expressed over transparency and the integrity and efficiency of the decision making process. His report, however, can not be expected and certainly not dealt with for a number of months. In the meantime the 2005 reassessment is planned to be used for 2006 taxes.

Are you unhappy with your own assessment? Do you feel this new 2005 assessment should be shelved until after the promised review by the provincial government of both their analysis and the Ombudsman’s report?

Make your views known directly to your MPP. Use our CARP E-VOICE service – it’s a quick and easy way to immediately e-mail your MPP.

Click here to get started.