If Burnaby homeowners were hoping to see a freeze on their 2016 property assessments, they’re getting a different kind of chill from the provincial government instead.
The province has declined a request by the City of Burnaby to freeze property assessments at last year’s levels.
In a letter signed by Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development Peter Fassbender, he writes that the current assessed values are the best basis to share the tax burden, adding that using older assessments may be perceived as being unfair by those whose property has decreased in value or increased less than the average.
“In addition, a roll freeze would require a statutory amendment which would impact the entire province, and is a measure intended for only the extreme and highly unusual circumstances that affect every community in British Columbia,” the letter said.
The letter also went on to note municipalities can’t vary tax rates within a class, but offered an option which is to pass a bylaw to take in the average assessed values over three years.
In December, the city wrote to the minister asking for a property assessment freeze in light of major increases to property values for 2016.
That same month, more than 7,000 Burnaby homeowners were given pre-assessment letters notifying them they could expect a dramatic increase in their property assessments.
The average increase for a typical single-family home in Burnaby ended up between 15 to 25 per cent. In some cases, homeowners have seen their property values rise by more than 30 per cent.
Coun. Nick Volkow strongly disagrees with the position of the provincial government and the arguments in the letter.
“I was hoping they’d do the right thing, but they didn’t surprise me by doing nothing at all,” he said adding any relief from the province would have helped.
The concern from council was how the rising home values would affect residents, who count on the homeowner’s grant to help pay their property taxes.
The letter noted the eligibility threshold for the grant has been increased to $1.2 million, and 91 per cent of homes in the province fall below this threshold.
