Is Winnipeg on a roll? A spate of “good news” stories has led some to that conclusion, and let’s hope they’re right. But new research data on the City’s high property taxes tell a cautionary tale, that the fundamentals necessary to a sustained boom may not be in place.
Results for "property tax"
Winnipeg’s Property Tax Number One
Our 2001survey and comparison of property taxes across Canada shows Winnipeg with among the highest in the nation.
Artificial Sprawl Caused By Property Tax System
Winnipeg is a case study example of artificial urban sprawl with 500 families a year now fleeing its sky-high property tax regime.
Creating Wealth Through Property Tax Cuts
When Michigan ended school property tax, house prices shot up.
Featured News
Weaponizing the Law
The indictment of former U.S. president Donald Trump for crimes invented by his political opponents is the most egregious example yet seen of the weaponizing of the law. The United States is now full of examples. However, in Canada, we also see the law being...
“Looking At” Seizing Control Over Western Canada’s Natural Resources
OTTAWA, REGINA - Last week, two things happened that could have profound impacts on natural resources development in Saskatchewan. One is a hint the federal government might want to take control of natural resources away from the provinces, and the other is the...
Death and Taxes: the Fundamental Unfairness of Taxing Estates
Recently, a long-dead and largely unlamented tax has been rediscovered, with some new-ish fans who never really repudiated their great love for it. It is the Death Tax, or Estate Tax, which was abolished in Canada in 1971 by a Liberal government when a capital gains...
When Property Prices Are a Crime
Everyone knew that Vancouver housing prices were criminal—they just didn’t know by how much. By now, many citizens are aware that offshore money, mostly from China, has been laundered through casinos and invested in properties which have often been flipped through...
Tax Breaks Don’t Help First Nations
First Nations populations and on-reserve commerce are growing faster than the Canadian average. This growth should be welcomed by the rest of the Canadian family, save for one problem: unjustified tax exemptions for on-reserve commerce and individuals. Loopholes in...
Taxation Would Help First Nations
If First Nations started to tax band members and include that revenue in their annual budget, there could be measurable improvements in their overall quality of life. In recent years, First Nations have been given more opportunities to create their own independent tax...
Taxation benefits First Nations
With the recent implementation of the First Nations Financial Transparency Act (FNFTA), this may be an excellent opportunity to raise another issue of contention—that of First Nations taxation. If First Nations governments were to tax their reserve base and...
Ottawa Should Introduce Native Property Law
The post-Shawn Atleo Aboriginal landscape is a perfect opportunity for Ottawa to embark on some bold new First Nations policy. Finally introducing a First Nations Property Ownership Act would certainly count as a bold move. In 2011, the federal government announced...
Why Shouldn’t Princeton Pay Taxes?
For the latest evidence of the town-gown divide, look no further than New Jersey, where earlier this summer residents of Princeton banded together to sue the prestigious school in their backyard. The residents argued that Princeton University, which boasts the largest endowment per student in the country, should no longer be entitled to its tax-exempt status because the school makes money—from its scientific patents, ticketed concerts, on-campus eateries and more. The Ivy League school is operating like a business, the plaintiffs say, so the tax code should treat it like one.
Hong Kong’s Simple, Low Taxes: Don’t We All Want It?
“I did a little calculation yesterday,” says Stuart Iliffe, a Canadian working in Hong Kong as chief financial officer of publishing house PPP Co. Ltd. “If I earned $100,000 [all figures Canadian unless noted] in Canada, after tax I would keep $64,000. If I earned $100,000 in Hong Kong, and made use of the married man’s tax allowance, I would keep $90,100.” Those are startling figures – and they don’t even take into account that the former British colony – since 1997 a special administrative region (SAR) of China – has no goods and services tax, harmonized sales tax or value added tax.
It’s Time To Sequester Green Energy Subsidies, Not Mythical Oil And Gas Tax Breaks
One of the big applause lines in President Obama’s recent Georgetown “climate action plan” pitch declaring an all-out EPA war on coal and it’s fossil cousins said: “And because billions of your tax dollars continue to still subsidize some of the most profitable corporations in the history of the world, my budget once again calls for Congress to end the tax breaks for big oil companies, and invest in the clean-energy companies that will fuel our future.” This is hardly a new strategy theme.