Quebec must follow in the footsteps of other provinces by implementing a property tax deferral program accessible to seniors, several municipalities are calling for. In this way, they hope to contribute to keeping seniors at home who are faced with a rapid increase in their property taxes.
The mayor of Saint-Lin–Laurentides, Mathieu Maisonneuve, took the bull by the horns this winter by mandating a law firm, to which the municipality gave several thousand dollars to obtain a legal opinion. The objective of this initiative: to determine the options available to the municipality of Lanaudière of more than 24,000 inhabitants, in full expansion, to reduce the tax burden of seniors, by allowing them to postpone the moment of paying part of their property taxes until the sale of their property.
“The economic context means that inflation is present and retirees are finding it increasingly difficult to maintain their purchasing power,” observes Mr. Maisonneuve. The latter is thus concerned to note that the property taxes, which have increased on average by nearly 18% this year in this municipality, represent an increasingly heavy financial burden to bear for the seniors of the sector, in particular those with low income.
“If I can extend their ability to stay at home for a few years, I will have done my job as mayor,” adds Mr. Maisonneuve. The elected official would thus like to allow people aged 65 and over in his municipality to defer part of their annual property taxes, which would be reimbursed to the City when the properties concerned are sold. “We could make a fundamental difference in people’s lives. »
Home support
Currently, the legal framework in Quebec does not allow municipalities to implement such an initiative on their territory. The province is also one of the only provinces in the country, along with Manitoba, not to have implemented a property tax deferral program on its territory. Such a measure could however “make a difference of 5 to 10 years” in the number of years that an elderly person with modest incomes will be able to remain in their property, estimates Gilles Thériault, of the organization Montreal for all, who has written several essays on this subject.
In New Brunswick, seniors age 65 and older can defer – at a low interest rate – paying the annual property tax increase associated with their principal residence until it is sold, while seniors in the Yukon can defer paying their property taxes for up to 75% of the assessed value of their home. In British Columbia, a similar program is available to homeowners 55 and older.
The mayor of Terrebonne, Mathieu Traversy, had also sent a letter in September 2022 to the president of the Union of Quebec Municipalities (UMQ), Daniel Côté, to question him on the relevance of setting up a deferral program. property tax in the province. The UMQ had also taken a position in favor of such a measure in the early 2010s, without having the desired effect with the Quebec government.
A measure under consideration
However, a decade later, the current inflationary context and the overbidding noted on the Quebec real estate market in recent years underline the importance of bringing this project to the fore, believes the mayor of Terrebonne. The property values of single-family residences have also increased on average by 50% in this city of Lanaudière last year, indicates Mathieu Traversy, who recounts in an interview having received several calls from senior residents of his city who fear having to move because that they are beginning to lack the financial means to repay their property taxes.
“Unfortunately, it is not because we live in a house that is expensive today that we have astronomical incomes and this situation particularly affects seniors,” notes the mayor. “It’s starting to weigh heavily on some of them. »
In writing, the president of the UMQ confirms that representations have been made to Quebec “to put forward this measure”, which could help prevent seniors with a precarious financial situation from being “forced to leave their home” because of their tax burden. Daniel Côté also says that “work” is underway within the Quebec government to assess the possibility of implementing such a measure in the province.
Seal nor Le Devoir, the office of the Minister of Finance, Eric Girard, did not want to comment on this file, simply indicating that the decisions taken for the next Quebec budget will be announced on March 21.