Vancouver council votes for homeowners to pay greater tax share GlobeBC
People on both sides say the small tax shift approved on Monday – 1 per cent this year, a half per cent in the next two – is largely symbolic and won’t be enough to help those businesses thrive.And those who voted against the tax shift say it could hurt an important sector in Vancouver: rental apartments.
The shift of 1 per cent of Vancouver’s total tax burden from commercial properties to residential means that a small-apartment owner whose property is worth about $6-million will see taxes go up by almost $1,200 to $7,866. Of that increase, $140 comes from the tax shift. “Residents love their little shops. This was really important,” said NPA councillor Lisa Dominato, who proposed spreading out a 2-per-cent shift over three years. “It’s important that we’re valuing our small-business community.”Veteran tax analyst and crusader Paul Sullivan applauded of the move, small as it was.“If you get a $900 savings, normally you need to sell $36,000 worth of product to cover that. It matters.
Vancouver has gone through regular debates over losing businesses because of high taxes in the past few decades. Councils from 1994 and then 2007 voted to shift taxes from commercial to residential.Much of Vancouver’s problems for small businesses arise from the way land is being developed and valued in the province.
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