The Brantford Expositor

Now less news for more money.

The Liberals

First they steal your money; then they steal your government.

Property Assessments

New assessments have been done on Brantford properties. The average assessment has gone up about 20% and will be phased in over the next five years. The problem with these assessments is that they are done in Toronto by MPAC employees who are not familiar with Brantford at all and are based on the market value of house sales in your area. As the sale prices of houses goes up so does the assessed value of all other properties increase regardless of whether these houses are really comparable. Many houses that go for sale are extensively updated by the owners before going on the market so that they fetch maximum prices. So no matter what shape your house is in, it is assessed the same as a house that is in top shape with a new furnace, new kitchen, new windows, new carpets and flooring, etc. At one time assessors actually came and inspected houses so that they could compare them more favourably but not any more. It is all done by people sitting behind computers who most likely have never set foot in Brantford.

Because municipal taxes are the most regressive form of taxation and have no relation to the ability of the person actually living in the house to pay them, seniors with a modest income who bought a house cheaply many years ago and now find that their house has risen sharply in value must pay ever higher taxes even though they have not realized any of this price gain. For this reason more and more seniors are being forced out of homes that they have lived in for years because they cannot meet the ever rising tax burden. And even though assessments have risen overall City Council doesn't seem to take that into consideration when setting tax rates.

These new assessments were done based on house prices earlier in the year and with the current financial turmoil and almost static real estate market the result will most likely be that house prices will start to decline (and maybe decline significantly) while assessments will continue to rise as these new values are phased in over the next four years even as the actual value of these homes falls. People could find themselves paying taxes based on an assessment that is far higher than the actual market value of their house. I wonder how the provincial government will justify this?