# property tax rates



## joncnca (Jul 12, 2009)

why is the property tax rate for multi-residential higher than residential? seems like it's 0.9% for residential and 1.5% for multi-residential in mississauga.

isn't it easier to deliver utilities to a group of homes rather than individual detached homes?

does multi-residential include townhomes?


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## Cal (Jun 17, 2009)

Multi would have more garbage and recycling pickup....

And I would assume multi does not apply to townhouses. As each townhouse pays its own individual property taxes.


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## OptsyEagle (Nov 29, 2009)

A lot of the property taxes go to education. Since the value of a 10 unit multi-residential unit ... divided by 10, would be a lot less then the value of a single residential property, however all would probably utilize the school system equally, then they use this method to account for the difference.

Now some would say that many people who live in a one bedroom apartment may not have as many children as would a person owning a 3 bedroom house. The answer the municipality will give you is this:

You don't pay property taxes so that they can educate your children in the future, you pay property taxes because you were educated in the past. Why do you think we bothered to educate you in the first place? Well they might not say the last sentence but the one before it will come out.

Those are my thoughts.


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## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

Cal said:


> Multi would have more garbage and recycling pickup....
> 
> ...


No, it is cheaper for city to collect garbage in one central location for a multi-unit building than to drive a truck to the same number of single-family dwellings.

The discriminatory rates for multi-residential have been a long-standing bone of contention with tenant's associations. See for example http://www.ontariotenants.ca/taxes/toronto-property-taxes.phtml

The problem is that homeowners have most of the political pull, and lowering taxes on rental units would mean raising taxes on homeowners. And yet it's odd, considering how biased in favour of tenants' rights most other legislation in Ontario is.


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## Cal (Jun 17, 2009)

I wasn't even thinking of the cost of the pick up, I was more thinking that a 10 unit building would have 10 times the garbage of a single residential home, thus perhaps that building should pay more for taxes to have all of that garbage picked up.

You are right thought, it would be a more economical way than to stop at every house individually to pick up a small amount of garbage.


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## canadianbanks (Jun 5, 2009)

Don't forget the costs associated with maintaining existing infrastructure like roads for example. Also think about multi-residential buildings as buying real estate in bulk, thus getting volume discount compared to condo owners that bought single condos. The residents of the rental buildings use the same services as condo/SFH owners, however because the price per unit for rental properties is way lower compared to residential single units, the city tries to make up for the difference with higher tax rate.


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## OptsyEagle (Nov 29, 2009)

Cal said:


> I wasn't even thinking of the cost of the pick up, I was more thinking that a 10 unit building would have 10 times the garbage of a single residential home, thus perhaps that building should pay more for taxes to have all of that garbage picked up.
> 
> You are right thought, it would be a more economical way than to stop at every house individually to pick up a small amount of garbage.


The problem here, if we focus on garbage is that most mult-residential buildings, in Ottawa anyways, contract and pay seperately to have their garbage and recycling picked up. The city is not even involved.


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