City of Kingston homeowners will see the assessed value of their property increase by an average of 4 per cent in 2013.
“Residential property values have increased by an average of approximately 16 per cent in the City of Kingston since 2008 when the last Assessment Update was delivered,” said Bev Disney, Municipal Relations Representative in the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation’s (MPAC) Kingston office.
Because of the four-year phase-in program, property owners will see an average assessment increase of 4 per cent each year for the next four years. The phase-in program does not apply to decreases in assessment which are applied immediately for the 2013 property tax year.
Property Assessment Notices are now being mailed to more than 87,000 area property owners as part of this fall’s province-wide Assessment Update.
An increase in assessment does not necessarily mean an increase in property taxes. If the assessed value of a home has increased by the same percentage as the average in the municipality, there might be no increase in the property taxes paid by property owners.
Disney said residential property values have increased by approximately 14.6 to 19.6 per cent in Frontenac County and the County of Lennox and Addington. With the four-year phase-in, property taxpayers will see an average increase of 3.0 to 4.2 per cent for the 2013 property tax year.
Since 2008, waterfront property in Kingston, Frontenac County and the County of Lennox and Addington has increased by an average of 19.9 to 28.2 per cent. With the four-year phase-in, property taxpayers will see an average increase of 4.5 to 6.9 per cent for the 2013 property tax year.
Farmland in the City of Kingston and in Frontenac County and the County of Lennox and Addington area has increased in value by approximately 12.3 to 15.5 per cent. With the four-year phase-in, property taxpayers will see an average increase of approximately 2.8 to 3.7 per cent.
According to Larry Hummel, MPAC’s Chief Assessor, values increased for all categories of agricultural land in every area of the province. For more detailed analysis of the changes in values that have taken place across Ontario, refer to MPAC’s special Assessment Update Edition of MarketSnapshot, available at www.mpac.ca.
“Our values reflect the local real estate market and confirm that most homeowners in the area have seen an increase in the value of their property over the past four years,” Disney said.
MPAC’s role is to accurately assess every property in Ontario. “Property owners should ask themselves if they could have sold their property for its assessed value on January 1, 2012. If the answer is yes, then their assessment is accurate. If not, we are committed to working with them to get it right,” Disney said.
Property owners can check the accuracy of their assessment. This website allows owners to easily compare the value of their property to others in their neighbourhood and community. Registration information is included with every Notice mailed this fall.
If property owners believe their assessment is not correct, they have the option of filing a Request for Reconsideration and MPAC will review their assessment free of charge.
Hours will be extended at MPAC’s Kingston office during the Notice mailing period this fall. Property owners should refer to their Notice for more information. Property owners can also call MPAC’s Customer Contact Centre toll free at 1-866-296-MPAC (6722).
Media contact: Bev Disney, Municipal Relations Representative, 613 342-3296, extension 218
MPAC (www.mpac.ca, www.aboutmyproperty.ca) is a not-for-profit corporation funded by all Ontario municipalities. MPAC is responsible for administering a uniform, province-wide property assessment system based on current values. It provides a range of services, including the preparation of annual assessment rolls for use by municipalities and the Province of Ontario to calculate property taxes and education taxes. Municipal enumerations are also conducted by MPAC in order to prepare a Preliminary List of Electors for each municipality and school board during an election year.
The last province-wide Assessment Update of Ontario properties took place in 2008 and was based on the legislated valuation date of January 1, 2008. This fall’s province-wide Assessment Update of Ontario’s nearly five million properties is based on the legislated valuation date of January 1, 2012. Eligible assessment increases will be phased in over four years (2013-2016). All assessment decreases are applied immediately. This year’s Assessment Update will be the second in Ontario’s new four-year assessment and phase-in cycle.
We received our assessment, and it is in keeping with the increases outlined above. I am having a hard time deciding whether or not to worry about this. On one hand our house is worth more, but we already knew that. On the other hand, we taxes could go up, but we already knew that too.
On a related note, I've heard horror stories from those who have contested the assessment. Outcomes range from positive: house assessed as being valued less but owner still has to pay for the assessment, to scary: house assessed as much more and taxes magically going up at the same time.
For many current home-owners, it should be viewed as a positive that residential property values have increased by an average of 16 percent since 2008. For people waiting to buy their first home, however, the continual increase in property values is making it more and more difficult to afford a place for themselves or their family.
Traditionally, average home prices have fluctuated around about 3.5 times people's income, but it has recently risen to 4.75 times income according to Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney. Long-term, I worry that your average Canadian family will no longer be able to afford their own home, especially with recent downward pressure on wages throughout much of Ontario.
Low mortgage rates are helping with affordability, but it is important for people to be careful not to over-stretch themselves in the event of a rate increase in the years ahead.
i agree with your comments Matt. I'd also like to add that while property values have increased, the increase in property taxes in no way reflects increases in incomes for the current homeowners. Think of those people who have spent their lifetimes paying off a mortgage, maintaining and repairing their home and finally retiring on fixed incomes. These people aren't realizing added value.
Property taxes increase to pay for wage increases… increases that force job cuts and the inability to hire a younger workforce and ultimately results in reduced services for homeowners.
It's a total of16%, not an average.
Seems like economy is returning or is the increase in price driven by foreign owners? I agree with Mathew and I anticipate that by 2015, interest rate might increase and add to more woes for Canadian home owners
There's a possibility that the interest rate will increase in the coming years.
Waterfront properties in the city and counties saw the biggest jump, which was between 19.9% and 28.2%. That means the increase will be between 4.5% and 6.9% for this year.