People with vacant homes in Toronto could be hit with new tax to help cool housing market
People with a vacant home in Toronto could be hit with a new tax designed to help cool the housing market.
On Tuesday, city council's executive committee approved a tax design and implementation plan on vacant Toronto homes starting in 2022.
"The goal of the tax is to change the behaviours of vacant home homeowners, encouraging them to sell or rent out the homes, thereby increasing the housing supply," the city said in a news release.
If approved by city council, a bylaw supporting the tax would come into effect on January 1, 2022, and that date would also become the start of the first tax reference year.
According to the city, the initial tax rate being recommended is one per cent of the property's current value assessment (CVA) for the year in which the home is vacant.
The city said they don’t know how many homes in Toronto are currently vacant, but using Vancouver’s tax metrics, the new law could bring in $55 to $66 million per year.
The tax reference year is the year that determines whether the tax is payable, the city says. The tax would become payable for the first time in early 2023, based on the occupancy status during the prior reference year.
The city said a home is considered vacant if it has been unoccupied for more than six months during the previous calendar year.
Some exemptions to this include death of the owner, the homeowner is under medical care, or the home is undergoing renovation.
As part of the tax design, property owners will be required to declare the status of their residential home each year.
Certain properties may be selected for audit on a random or specific criteria basis, the city says.
If approved, a final report and bylaw will be prepared for council’s review by the end of 2021.
"A vacant home tax will result in a much needed increase to Toronto's housing supply, so I’m happy to see it approved today," Mayor John Tory said in a news release. "We simply can't afford to have housing for thousands of homes sitting empty."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Weather alerts issued for 7 provinces, 1 territory
Warnings of up to 60 millimetres of rain and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces and one territory ahead of the Easter weekend.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Luxury cruise line selling world cruise suite for US$1.7 million
Luxury operator Regent Seven Seas Cruises is raising their price tag to eye-watering levels, with a suite on an upcoming 140-day world voyage costing US$1.7 million.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
A Filipino villager is nailed to a cross for the 35th time on Good Friday to pray for world peace
A Filipino villager has been nailed to a wooden cross for the 35th time to reenact Jesus Christ’s suffering in a brutal Good Friday tradition he said he would devote to pray for peace in Ukraine, Gaza and the disputed South China Sea.
Ontario homeowner on the hook for $27,000 when contractor severed power line
An Ontario man who built a garage on his property has been locked in a battle with his electricity provider for a year and half over a severed power line.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
'Oppenheimer' finally premieres in Japan to mixed reactions and high emotions
'Oppenheimer' finally premiered Friday in the nation where two cities were obliterated 79 years ago by the nuclear weapons invented by the American scientist who was the subject of the Oscar-winning film. Japanese filmgoers' reactions understandably were mixed and highly emotional.