Policy Forum: Who Needs Property Tax Deferral?

Frances Woolley

Canadian Tax Journal, 2022, vol. 70, issue 4, 861-884

Abstract: There are good reasons to impose property taxes on owner-occupied housing. Yet population aging and declining rates of home ownership among younger Canadians mean that an increasing number of homes are owned by older Canadians, many of whom have modest incomes. This raises the question "How do these seniors get the wherewithal to pay their property taxes?" British Columbia, Alberta, and some other jurisdictions have addressed this issue through property tax deferral programs. These allow property taxes to be deferred until the home is sold, with the interest charged on the deferred amount generally being below market rates. The province or local municipality ensures that the deferred taxes will be repaid by taking a lien on the property. Property tax deferral would be expected to be attractive for seniors, because it usually allows them to tap into their home equity at a low cost and maintain their standard of living as they age. Yet the (scant) evidence available suggests that the takeup rates for property tax deferral programs are "extremely low." This article sets out the rationale for property tax deferral and describes current Canadian property tax deferral programs. The author discusses policy options, arguing that there is a rationale for having property tax deferrals in place, and substantial scope for redesigning property tax deferral programs so that their benefits reach those who need them.

Keywords: Property tax; tax deferral; housing affordability; population aging (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.ctf.ca/EN/Publications/CTJ_Contents/2022CTJ4.aspx (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ctf:journl:v:70:y:2022:i:4:p:861-884

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
Canadian Tax Foundation, 145 Wellington Street West, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5J 1H8
https://www.ctf.ca/E ... ns_ListingBooks.aspx

DOI: 10.32721/ctj.2022.70.4.pf.fwoolley

Access Statistics for this article

Canadian Tax Journal is currently edited by Kim Brooks, Kevin Milligan, and Daniel Sandler

More articles in Canadian Tax Journal from Canadian Tax Foundation Canadian Tax Foundation, 145 Wellington Street West, Suite 1400, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5J 1H8.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Jim Lyons ().