Vancouver homeowners and renters will take on a larger share of the property tax burden in a move to help local businesses.
The City Council has voted in favour of a 2% tax shift from non-residential class to residential class buildings, phased in over three years.
The initial shift of 1% will be for 2019 with further shifts of 0.5% for 2020 and 2021.
The 2019 shift will mean property tax for an average single-family home ($2.3m) which was due to decrease by $32 year-over-year to $2,995, will instead rise by $54 (0.7%) to $3,049.
For an average condo ($0.9m) the increase was due to be $137 year-over-year but will now be $22 higher, making a 14.8% hike overall.
Meanwhile, an average commercial property (5.3m) will see a 2.2% tax rise year-over-year but the increase will be $508 less than the planned $996 hike, taking the average property tax to $22,442 for 2019.
The previous shift on tax share was in 2008 with the program completed in 2012. This latest move will increase the residential tax share to 55.9% and reduce the non-residential tax share to 44.1%.
The changes will be reflected in the 2019 tax bills, which will be sent out starting May 17, 2019.
