Tax deferral plan for seniors is full of...well, holes!

Abandoned hotel in Muskoka

Property-tax deferral plan for seniors will be hugely popular

"The Grits must be crazy" 

Ya think?
 - by journalist Joanne Chianello Why wouldn't we all want to defer taxes?!

Look at my local MPP*,
 whose property has had a lien on it! He's on his own tax deferral plan.
He makes over $100,000 per year, off of taxpayer dollars, yet hasn't been able to resolve this issue without a lien on his home.

*On Twitter:
.@randyhillier, please pay your taxes.  bit.ly/rtZZ55 #PCPO #onpoli)
THIS makes @randyhillier look foolish!http://ow.ly/6u8KG



Also on Twitter: RT @robertbenzie @timhudak ducks questions on why landowner candidates Randy Hillier and Jack MacLaren skipped ploughing match.

I'm sorry to write another political rant, but I have to; as a daughter, grandmother, seniors' advocate and tax-paying citizen. An election is no time to dream up bizarre plans.

Yasir Naqvi (Liberal), in some misplaced bizarre idea, has proposed a benevolent move to assist seniors without the funds to pay taxes.

To allow seniors to defer property taxes is a huge mistake. This is nothing like putting in a wheelchair ramp for a senior with mobility issues. The province will loan them the money, at no cost, until the house is sold.

Seriously?
We just put a new roof on our home. It is a small cost to the upkeep of a house, a huge amount compared to taxes. Imagine the back taxes that would have to be collected. The administration of same.

I've attended elder abuse conferences where municipal workers have seen homes in such disrepair that the place needs to be condemned. Now, if this family defers taxes, do you think they'll put the money into upkeep? I think not.

Private sale!

This means that, for example, my mom and dad can defer taxes until they have to move into LTC. Then, when I have to sell their house, the taxes come due. What if the home has been neglected enough that it won't fetch much on the market? What if there isn't enough in their nest egg to let them live out their lives in comfort? We'll all have to pay on their behalf.

In my house we have our suspicions that this initiative comes not from seniors trying to stay in their homes, but from cottagers who are struggling to keep two homes, and face taxes in the range of $4500 in, for example, Muskoka. Landowners there complain bitterly about their taxes, despite many municipal services.

Heritage buildings and inheritable buildings

Old barns

Some cottages are run-down, and not worth very much, but these seniors are carrying a city house as well as a cottage. Municipalities are forcing cottagers to get onto local water and sewer. Many cannot afford this, and must either rent out their cottages, or give them up. There were a raft of sales before we left Bala, Muskoka.

Heart's Content!

It is a shock to pay taxes for many, but it is the cost of being a home owner, for the services all residents require, and the infrastructure that keeps municipalities turning. It is part of being in this society.

While the libertarians want liberty from paying taxes, society will simply not work without all of paying our part.

poverty and addiction by some seniors

What if suddenly my parents die, and I inherit the house? Mummy and Daddy haven't paid taxes in 20 years. I don't have the money to pay those taxes. Or, I must buy out my brother, but cannot do so, as well as paying taxes.

What if a homeowner sells privately? Who would track this?

Abandoned buildings

What about those who own more than homes, but apartment buildings and earn a profit off of these buildings?

Much simpler would be a reverse mortgage. This protects the rest of us taxpayers, as well as society. This releases taxpayers from paying for administrative costs and the interest on these inter-free loans the Liberals propose.

If one cannot afford to pay taxes, one needs to rethink home ownership. We talk about being good stewards of the land, this includes our buildings. House hunting we can across many wrecks of houses, uncared for and rotting.