Member Toolbox

What You Can Do

At our November 2005 Annual Meeting, members suggested that we tell them clearly on our website what individuals can do to support WRAFT's efforts to halt the 2005 assessment and work towards real property tax reform. There are four steps you can take to drive the message home that reform is needed:

  1. Email your MPP where you live and vote using our new tool. We've made it as easy as we can.
  2. Write the Ombudsman using the complaint form at ombudsman.ca. Tell him he should broaden his investigation because the system is unfair to waterfront property owners and is broken as well. Choose from the following list of concerns but also tell your own story; what has happened to your assessment and taxes in recent years.

    Why is the Ontario Property Tax System Unfair?
    • It causes massive tax increases for large numbers of Ontarians, especially those on water and in hot real estate market areas
    • Property owners are not given appropriate explanations for how their assessments are prepared. The system is formula driven, there is little local input and it is not comprehensible to the property owner.
    • There are huge variations in assessment increases within local areas and between individual properties with no apparent cause. The system is broken.
    • The appeal process is exhausting, confusing to most people, and often must be repeated with each assessment
    • The system taxes unrealized gains, cuts across all income levels and causes severe financial hardship for large numbers of Ontarians, in particular, seniors on fixed income
    What needs to be done
    • The present assessment-based property tax system needs to be more equitable.
    • The implementation of the 2005 assessment should be deferred until a comprehensive and objective study of the system's flaws is completed and alternative methodologies are closely examined
    • The Ombudsman's investigation should be broadened to include a review of the whole assessment process, including the role that MPAC plays in the assessment process.
  3. Write the editor of your local newspaper and raise this waterfront property issue. Again, include your own story and add any of the concerns raised above.
  4. Let us know if you're willing to be used as an example of what's wrong with the system. If you are, let us know about your situation, how much have your taxes risen, what is the %age increase in the latest assessment, where are you located, are you retired, are you thinking you may have to sell your property, as well as other factors that come to mind.

All of the above steps are of great help to us as we continue to fight for a fair property tax system.