Barrie lands in middle of Ontario's property-tax pack, online brokerage Zoocasa says

City had 23rd-lowest rate of 35 major provincial municipalities

Simcoe.com
November 18, 2020
Chris Simon

As Barrie heads into another round of budget deliberations, an online real estate brokerage has some decent news for city taxpayers.

According to Zoocasa, Barrie had the 23rd-lowest property-tax rate of Ontario’s major municipalities this year. The ranking looked at 35 communities and found Barrie’s residential rate sits at 1.21 per cent, placing it in the middle tier. That percentage means a Barrie homeowner, whose house is assessed at $500,000, will pay an average of $6,051 in total property taxes.

“While property taxes may not be the largest influence when deciding how much to spend or what municipality to buy a home (in), the costs are worth understanding as they amount to thousands of dollars per year,” Zoocasa spokesperson Jannine Rane said. “In 2020 in particular, a number of home buyers in the Toronto area have elected to trade their urban condos for bigger homes across Ontario. It’s important for buyers who are moving to a new municipality to note that the property-tax rate, and the total amount they pay in taxes every year, will change as rates vary widely.”

Windsor had the highest tax rate at 1.78 per cent, followed by Thunder Bay (1.56) and Sault Ste. Marie (1.53).

Toronto (0.6 per cent), Markham (0.63), Richmond Hill (0.65) and Vaughan (0.67) had the lowest rates in the province.

This report comes as Barrie launches its online Budget Allocator tool, which lets residents have a say on where they’d like to see tax dollars spent prior to the start of formal 2021 budget deliberations.

Like many other municipalities, Barrie has been significantly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the city continues to provide essential services, including policing, road maintenance, and garbage and recycling collection, Mayor Jeff Lehman said.

“We need to make some tough choices about the year ahead,” he said. “It is your money, so tell us how you want it spent, and help us chart a course for the future of our city.”

Budget Allocator is available until Dec. 18. The 2021 budget could be approved in late January.

Barrie is the only Simcoe County-area municipality listed in the Zoocasa report.

To use the tool, visit buildingbarrie.ca. The full property-tax report can be found at zoocasa.com.