Official opposition to the city of Montreal is urging the Plante administration to honor its promise to offer a property tax deferral for low-income seniors.
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Ensemble Montréal director Aref Salem has criticized Projet Montréal’s failure to act to help low-income seniors in these times of inflation and rising local taxes.
In 2023, Montreal municipal taxes will increase by an average of 4.1% for residential buildings and 5% for single-family homes. “This is the largest municipal tax increase since 2011 in terms of homeowner taxes in the city,” Mr. Salem said.
His party also reminds that the real estate value of properties in the metropolis increased by an average of 31.4% in 2023-2025 according to the real estate appraisal list, which is reflected in rising taxes.
So he wants low-income seniors to be able to defer paying that tax increase until their property is sold.
This follows a promise made by Valérie Plante’s team during the 2021 election campaign, when Projet Montréal pledged to introduce a property tax deferral for low-income homeowners and seniors.
The opposition will petition the local council on January 23 to put pressure on the mayor’s team to honor at least part of that commitment.
“The opposition’s proposal will be discussed in the next municipal council,” replied Marikym Gaudreault, spokesman for the Executive Committee, without saying whether his political party would support him.
second charge
This is the second time the idea of a tax deferral for seniors has been put forward by the opposition. She had previously made a similar proposal in September 2019, aimed at all Montreal owners over the age of 65.
This time, the measure would only affect those on low incomes.
“We’re trying to control the increase in spending for people on low or fixed incomes who are already paying more for their groceries and their more expensive medicines,” Salem explained.
The opposition leader hopes to put beacons in the tax bill after consulting with Quebec, as any change will be decided at the provincial level for a property tax deferral.