Tag Archives: Winnipeg

Katz hints tax freeze to stay

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MAYOR Sam Katz hinted Winnipeg’s long-standing property tax freeze would continue for another year just days before the city releases its annual operating budget.

Katz is set to table the city’s 2011 operating budget on Monday and said his goal is to keep taxes frozen this year. However, he said it’s becoming more difficult to balance increased spending on city services with limited revenues, noting this year’s spending blueprint was his “most challenging” to date.

Katz did not explicitly say there would be no property tax hike this year, but said it’s his goal not to lift the freeze.

“I don’t think it would be realistic to think property taxes are going to be frozen forever,” Katz said on Friday. “The goal for this year is to basically keep the taxes frozen.”

The $800-million-plus budget will outline the city’s spending on policing, emergency services, insect control and other programs. Last year, city spending increased by about $30 million, the bulk of which went toward salaries and benefits.

Last year’s budget was $817.7 million, up from $787.2 million in 2009.

This year’s increase could be even higher, as the city heads into multiple rounds of labour negotiations to determine the wages and benefits of more than half of all city employees. Katz said bargaining can “most definitely” impact the operating budget, and Winnipeg could be looking at an extra $20 million to $30 million when negotiations are complete.

At the same time, Katz said Winnipeg has added more police, cadets and a new helicopter to its public safety arsenal. Compounding matters is the threat of a spring flood, which provincial forecasters say has a one-in-10 chance of reaching 1997 levels.

“Trying to find the balance between it all is not an easy task, because you know the revenues are not even growing as fast as inflation is,” Katz said. “So you know, there are challenges but I think we’ve come up with some very good ideas to move this forward.”

The mayor has remained tight-lipped on how Winnipeg will strike this balance, but the city will have access to an additional $5.3 million from settling the dispute over municipal gas and electricity taxes with Manitoba Hydro.

This year’s annual operating budget will be tabled later than usual, amid speculation the mayor was waiting for a report from the Infrastructure Funding Council, a task force struck last year to look at options for generating revenues to repair Winnipeg’s infrastructure backlog. The council was to examine internal and external revenue sources, including user fees, property tax, fuel tax and income tax.

Katz said he’s “disappointed” the report wasn’t available before the operating budget was tabled, but expects it will be released sometime this.

For the past two years, the city has relied on disputed money to balance its operating budget. In 2010, the city banked on a contentious $10.6 million from Manitoba Hydro, and only wound up receiving half of that — too late to avoid incurring an on-paper deficit for the year.

The city also used one-time transfers to balance the 2010 operating budget.

In 2009, the city relied on $11.5 million in undefined “new funding” from the province, which it did not receive, but still managed to balance its budget.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/Katz-hints-tax-freeze-to-stay–117456613.html

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Strike vote not a factor: mayor ??

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WINNIPEG’S spending plan for 2011 won’t be revealed until early March — but not because of the ongoing labour dispute with the city’s largest union, Mayor Sam Katz said.

Katz told reporters Wednesday he plans to table the city’s operating budget on or around March 5, which is later than usual but well within the time frame required for council to debate the spending blueprint, which must be passed before the end of March.

The operating budget outlines the city’s spending on all programs, from policing to health inspections.

It has ballooned by tens of millions of dollars per year in recent years, primarily because of increasing wages and benefits.

As a result, the city has offered its largest union, the Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 500, a wage freeze for the first two years of a four-year contract, both sides have confirmed. This has led to a Friday strike vote.

The outcome of that vote, however, will not affect the operating budget, Katz told reporters Wednesday.

“This is no different than snow removal,” said the mayor, referring to volatile budget line items that require the city to find more money at the end of the year, if necessary.

Katz also said the budget will not be affected by a pending report from a Chris Lorenc-led infrastructure council the mayor struck in 2010.

If that committee recommends a property-tax hike, he is not bound to heed them, Katz said.

“Whatever recommendations come forward, (they’re) not going to happen overnight,” the mayor said.

The city has frozen the pool of property taxes collected from existing Winnipeg properties since 1998. Katz has pledged to do what he can to avoid a rate hike this year, but has not ruled out ending the freeze.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/Strike-vote-not-a-factor-mayor–116396059.html

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Home value rise may not raise tax bill

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Don’t be shocked if you get a tax assessment letter in the mail this week and your property value has jumped.

It doesn’t necessarily mean your property taxes are going up.

The city mailed the second of three batches of preliminary assessment notices this week to about 62,000 homeowners in southwest Winnipeg. The first batch of about 70,000 hit northwest Winnipeg in November, while the final batch of about 76,000 will hit homes east of the Red River next month.

The notices are preliminary estimates of your 2012 assessment, which is the market value of your home, as of April 1, 2010.

“It’s our estimate of what your property would have sold for on that date,” said Nelson Karpa, director of taxation and assessment for the city.

That value will provide the basis for your 2012 property tax bill. This year’s tax bill, which is based on the 2010 assessment (the April 1, 2008 market value) will be mailed in May and will contain the same assessed value as it did last year.

Karpa said the average citywide increase between the 2010 assessment and the preliminary estimate for 2012 is somewhere between 12% and 15% for residential properties.

But that doesn’t mean your property tax bill will climb by that same percentage.

When properties are re-assessed, the city decides how much your taxes will be based on the comparison of your property’s increase to the overall average increase, which includes both residential and commercial properties.

During the 2010 assessment, for example, the average was about 67%, so anyone whose property value grew by more than that ended up paying more on their property tax bill, while anyone whose increase was below that number paid less.

The total property tax revenue — minus new properties — stays the same for the city, which is what is meant when councillors talk about the “property tax freeze.”

Karpa said people shouldn’t fear a jump of more than the 12% or 15% average on their 2012 estimate means an increase, as the commercial properties have not yet been calculated and included in the average. The tax rate will also depend on decisions made by city council, school boards and the provincial government in the coming months.

http://crossfireconsulting.fortmcmurrayautoservice.com/blog/wp-admin/post-new.php?post_type=post

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Home reno tax credit expires

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Some big-box home renovation stores stayed open later than usual Sunday night to accommodate Canadians hoping to take advantage of the federal Home Renovation Tax Credit.

Consumers had until midnight to buy eligible supplies to claim the tax break before the program ended.

The Canada Revenue Agency said building materials that arrived at homes before the deadline would qualify for the credit. Those materials don’t have to be installed before the deadline — just purchased.

Homeowners were reminded that only work completed before the deadline could be claimed on a property owner’s 2009 income tax return.

The 15 per cent tax credit applied to expenditures of between $1,000 and $10,000, with a maximum credit of $1,350.

The program covered homes and cottages inhabited by the person making the claim at some time during the past year. It also applied to improvements to common areas in condominium buildings.

The credit was introduced last January to help stimulate the economy during the recession.

Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/consumer/story/2010/01/31/home-reno-tax.html#ixzz19tAeirCg

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Canada has highest commercial rental property taxes

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Owners of commercial rental property in this country pay higher taxes than anywhere else in the world, according to Taxand.

The Luxembourg-based tax advisory firm found Canadians spend on average “a massive” 53.85% of their rental income on taxes.

That’s more than 12% higher than the second country on the list, the United States. Norway and the U.K. round out the top-four most-expensive places to invest in commercial property, with 36% and 34% of income payable to taxes. Finland has the lowest tax rate among the 23 countries surveyed with just less than 9% recouped by the taxman.

“The alarmingly high total tax rate in Canada is largely the combined result of high levels of both income tax, which stands at a rate of 30%, and real-estate tax at 3.60%,” the report said.

The most expensive place to sell a commercial property is Norway, Taxand found.

http://www.torontosun.com/money/2010/11/29/16361826.html

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Toronto tenants will be paying less on 2011

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Tenants in Toronto has something to celebrate other than Holidays. The City of Toronto will be dispensing mails to the city’s rental households announcing an “automatic rent reduction.”

According to the press release issued by the City of Toronto, tenants of buidlings with six units and so will pay 20% of their rent toward property taxes, so if tax went down so as the rent fee.

128,109 household will receive the mail and the act will be implemented as early as Dec. 31, 2010. If you are one of the lucky ones, it only means that the property tax of your building has been reduced by more than 2.49% this year. If you weren’t able to get the letter, it may indicate that the building has not been covered by the Residential Tenancies Act which only applies to buildings occupied as residences before Nov. 1, 1991.

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Realtor association targets land transfer tax for first-time homebuyers

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The new president of the WinnipegREALTORS is hoping persistence pays off when it comes to the much maligned provincial land transfer tax.Claude Davis and other WR representatives met Finance Minister Roseann Wowchuk to urge her government to exempt first-time homebuyers from having to pay the land transfer tax.

The association made the same pitch last year to then finance minister Greg Selinger, now premier, but to no avail. Davis said he’s hoping this time will be different, although Wowchuk didn’t give them an answer at the meeting.

“She received it as information and said she’d consider it. And that’s all we can ask,” Davis said.

However, Wowchuk didn’t sound like she held out much hope for an LTT reprieve in this spring’s provincial budget.

She said in an interview that although she’ll take this and other tax-change requests into consideration, the province is facing a deficit as a result of the recession and has to find a way to balance the budget, stimulate the economy and maintain health care and other essential services.

Davis said WR representatives pointed out that each house transaction in Manitoba generates about $40,000 in spinoff economic benefits, and exempting first-time buyers as some other provinces do could help stimulate the market by making homes easier for them to purchase.

The tax is intended to pay for the costs of registering a property transaction in the provincial land registry. It is based on a percentage of the value of a transaction, rather than a set fee.

The tax rate is 0.5 per cent for the portion of the selling price between $30,000 and $90,000, one per cent from $90,000 to $150,000, 1.5 per cent from $150,000 to $200,000, and two per cent for anything above $200,000. On a $350,000 sale, the homebuyer pays a land transfer tax of $4,650.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/realtor-association-targets-land-transfer-tax-for-first-time-homebuyers-81304347.html

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Canadian home value stays strong

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Home prices will stabilize and remain the same for some time… this is what the report of The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) had indicated.

In other words, Canadian homeowners are unlikely to experience what U.S .have underwent in terms of the decline of their home value.

“The relationships between average price and income has recently been cited as portending a U.S.- style correction in Canadian home prices,” said Gregory Klump, chief economist for CREA.

Home prices tend to perform well in the market in accordance with periods of sharp growth periods of stability. By contrast, income generally follows an orderly upwards trend over time.

Winnipeg REALTORS® president Claude Davis said the Winnipeg market is more characterized by the term “slow but steady.” In addition, it is known to be one of the most affordable markets in Canada which is not prone to accelerated price increase unlike Calgary, Vancouver and Toronto.

“The Canadian housing market is now widely thought beat, or very near, the top of a cycle,” said Klump, “and the ratio of the home prices to incomes is currently high. This ratio will revert to its long-term average as it always does as part of a normal housing market cycle.

“History suggests, however, that it will not do so by means of a significant correction in home prices,” he added. “The more likely scenario is that home prices will stabilize, giving incomes chance to catch up again.”

Conservative lending practices in the mortgage industry combined with prudent borrowing and accelerated payments among Canadian mortgage holders have been seen throughout the recent housing market cycle.

Accelerated accumulation of home equity will provide options for the small proportion of homeowners who may face financial difficulty when their mortgage is renewed at a higher interest rate. Their trends are expected to help Canada avoid a U.S.-style housing crisis.

The unwinding of the housing boom in Canada will be more orderly, characterized by softening sales activity and stable prices, according to CREA.

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Tax-bill jump riles homeowner

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A family of five got a nasty shock from Winnipeg’s city hall this festive season. Starting in the new year, their monthly Tax Installment Payment Plan (TIPP) bill is going up 31 per cent.

“They sent us a letter a week or so ago — our TIPP went from $169 to $221,” said Ken Thoroski, who lives in St. Vital.

“I thought there might be some kind of mistake.”

The city says it’s no mistake — the increase is for their own good.
“Given the recent increase in assessed value for many homes in the city, the assessment and taxation department is anticipating an increase in taxes for some homeowners,” a 311 operator told Thoroski in an email.

While any increase in property taxes won’t be decided until spring when city council sets the municipal budget, the TIPP program isn’t waiting.
“In order to diminish the impact of a possible tax increase, the department is estimating your possible 2010 taxes and setting your monthly TIPP payment accordingly” starting Jan. 1. Once the mill rate is set in the spring, the department will know exactly what Thoroski’s taxes will be for 2010 and adjust his monthly TIPP up or down as necessary, the city said.

“It’s wrong,” Thoroski said. “They’re hitting you as hard as they can up front.”

The TIPP program allows property and business owners to make consecutive monthly payments for taxes rather than a single annual payment.

It starts on Jan. 1 of each year and payments are made on the first banking day of each month by automatic withdrawal from an account with chequing privileges at a financial institution.

Thoroski said upping his TIPP payment by so much before the new rate is set isn’t much of a privilege.

“You’re going to pay for 12 months and they hit you hard up front so they’re way ahead and pay you back later,” Thoroski said.

“It’s putting more money in their coffers,” continued the married father of three.

No one is forced to be on the TIPP program, which was designed to help people budget their property and school taxes, said the city’s head of assessment and taxation.

“If they have a real concern with how they’re being requested to make payments when taxes aren’t due, then send us a letter asking us to remove them from TIPP,” Nelson Karpa said. The city will then send the tax bill in the spring and the family can pay it at the end of June when the full amount is due, he said.

Still, the increase in property taxes riles Thoroski, who says the city won’t address his complaints about the sidewalk flooding on his street and noisy, over-lit service stations near his home.

Karpa said an increase in property taxes follows the 2008 reassessment, in which the market value of some homes in Winnipeg increased by as much as 100 per cent from five years earlier.

“There was a pretty dramatic increase in the value of real estate,” Karpa said. The average property value increased 67 per cent, he said.

“We simply report on what the market has done.”

Homeowners whose assessment increase is above the city average will likely see their property taxes increase.

The market value of Thoroski’s home increased 78 per cent from 2003 to 2008, according to the city’s property assessment website.

If city council succeeds in freezing property taxes again, homeowners with assessment increases below 67 per cent could see their property taxes drop.

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/tax-bill-jump-riles-homeowner-79968637.html

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BMO: Time for Homeowners/Prospective Buyers to Stress Test their Budget

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Talk to a BMO Bank of Montreal banker about considering a bigger downpayment and reducing the amortization on your mortgage to save money

The housing market in Canada has seen existing Canadian home sales surge 76 per cent from their January lows. Not only that, in November, existing home prices spiked 19 per cent above year-ago levels, the second fastest clip in two decades. With record low interest rates, more people than ever are looking to purchase a home. However, BMO experts are predicting that interest rates will rise in 2010.

“We expect the Bank of Canada’s overnight rate target to climb from 0.25 per cent beginning in July 2010, to 4.25 per cent in mid-2012. In turn, consumers can also expect mortgage rates to increase,” said Sal Guatieri, Senior Economist, BMO Capital Markets. “While today’s ultra-low borrowing costs represent a unique opportunity to purchase a property, home buyers need to proceed with caution and keep in mind that renewal rates will likely be substantially higher in coming years.”

“Stretching the limits of your budget by choosing the maximum amortization period and a minimum downpayment leaves you little wiggle room to deal with an unexpected financial challenge,” said Jane Yuen, Senior Manager, Mortgages, BMO Bank of Montreal. “A meaningful down payment and shortening your amortization by making extra payments on your mortgage will save you tens of thousands of dollars in interest costs.”

http://www.newswire.ca/en/releases/archive/December2009/22/c5258.html

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