Toronto vs. Mississauga: city services funded by property taxes
Posted August 13, 2014 2:18 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
A report by the Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance has found residential taxes in Toronto are low and have been increasing slowly at less than the rate of inflation.
According to the Is Toronto Fiscally Healthy? A Check-up on the City’s Finances report, “Toronto residents, on average, pay low property taxes compared with residents of other Ontario cities.”
Earlier this year, Toronto City Council approved a 2.23 per cent property tax hike in 2014, which will cost the average homeowner an extra $56.
Below is a breakdown of how money generated from property taxes is filtered through various services, and how it compares with the City of Mississauga.
City of Toronto: where your property tax dollars go
Based on the city’s data in 2014, if the average home has an assessed value of $499,521, the homeowner pays $2,598 in property taxes.
Out of the $2,598 figure, $662.96 goes to police services and the board, the TTC gets $371.91, while $283.21 goes to fire services, and $142.33 is allocated to transportation needs.
Below is the full breakdown, or click here to view it on your mobile or tablet device.
City of Toronto: where your property tax dollars go
In Toronto, a portion of the property tax goes to the provincial education system, while the rest goes to the city and to transit expansion. So if your house is assessed at $499,521, then $1,014.03 would go to education, $2,584.85 is allotted to the city, and transit expansion receives $12.70.
NOTE: In May, the Toronto Real Estate Board said the average price of a detached home in Toronto has hit $965,000. However, the city’s assessed value is not based on the open market since the final sale price would be much higher.
City of Mississauga: where your property tax dollars go
According to data provided by the City of Mississauga, the average assessed value of a single-family dwelling is $479,000. Based on that number, the homeowner would pay $1,391 in property taxes.
Out of the money generated from property taxes, the city could get 31 per cent, the Region of Peel 46 per cent, and 23 per cent to education.
With respect to that the city gets, based on the $1,391 figure, $294 would be allotted to fire and emergency services, $229 goes to roads and storm drainage, while Mississauga Transit would get $192.
Below is the full breakdown, or click here to view it on your mobile or tablet device.
