Coquitlam council officially set the property tax rate on Monday (May 2) — six months after it OK’d the 2022 budget.
Council unanimously gave fourth and final readings to the annual tax rate bylaw, raising it by 3.43 per cent or $74.
The charges are for municipal and Metro Vancouver service levies, as well as fees collected on behalf of the provincial government (school tax), the BC Assessment Authority, TransLink and the Municipal Finance Authority.
Property taxes are based on residential and business assessments by the BC Assessment Authority as of July 1 of the previous year.
According to the authority, property values for homes in Coquitlam have shot up 20 per cent over the past year and 14 per cent for commercial and industrial enterprises.
WHEN ARE PROPERTY TAXES DUE?
At the end of this month, the city will mail tax notices to Coquitlam property owners. Taxes are due on July 4.
Tri-City residents who are 55 or older, are survived by a spouse or have a disability can defer their property taxes by contacting the provincial government.
This year, the tax hike is attributed to the new RCMP union contract, as well as major capital projects such as the Spani Pool Renewal, the North East Community Centre on Burke Mountain and the Cedar Drive expansion.
But while taxes rose, utilities in Coquitlam also went up this year:
- water rates by $24/$14 (or four per cent)
- sewer and drainage rates by $22 (or four per cent)
- solid waste rates by $10 (or three per cent)
ASSESSMENT APPEALS
Meanwhile, according to a report from Michelle Hunt, Coquitlam’s general manager of finance, lands and police, the number of assessment appeals is significantly down in 2022 compared with previous years.
Of the 299 appeals received to contest a 2021 property value, 18 were withdrawn and 231 were disallowed.
Still, the 50 remaining appeals to assessed values has meant an $80 million drop in the assessment roll, she wrote in her report to council.
As well, there are 93 outstanding appeals from 2021 at the authority's second-level stage, adding another possible $1.4 million reduction to the roll.
