Last week I received a telephone call from Dan Fumano of the Vancouver Sun. He was writing a story about deferring property taxes and came across several articles I had written, and media interviews I had given in years gone by on why I thought the current provincial program was absurd and should be improved.
My primary concern was that as designed, while the program did benefit house rich/cash poor seniors, (and perhaps some younger families) too often the beneficiaries were well-to-do people in their 50s and 60s who didn't really need government help. However, they were smart enough to realize they could borrow cheap money at prime MINUS 2% for investment purposes or other discretionary spending.
While the cost to the government was essentially the spread between its borrowing rate and prime minus 2% along with administrative costs, I thought that if the government wanted to address housing affordability with cheap money, there were far better ways to do so. (For example, lend the cheap money to first time buyers needing a second mortgage.)
Also, why set the age threshold at only 55? Why charge families with children a higher interest rate than well-do-do 55-year olds?. Why charge simple interest, rather than compound interest like other provinces do, especially when the government must pay compound interest on its borrowings? .
Dan Fumano undertook quite a bit of research in putting the story together. He discovered wealthy homeowners living in $20 million plus homes who, like me, were taking advantage of the program even though they didn't need the money At the same time, he learned from the Seniors' Advocate that many seniors who could truly benefit from the program were not even aware of it.
You can read Fumano's story here:https://www.pressreader.com/canada/vancouver-sun/20251004/281509347375298?srsltid=AfmBOorfVaf2gY1mCjrXBpQ-lGBW1oBzntXf2-u0kYiuS7fPEzWGLSmI
Feedback. While many agreed with me, other people on social media questioned and mocked my concerns. One Facebook follower suggested I was simply seeking headlines. He was right.
As you can see below, my concerns have warranted headlines in the past and as a result there has been increased program awareness and take up, both from those who need it and those who don't. But surprisingly, my concerns have not prompted the provincial government to address what I consider to be absurd aspects of the program.
Hopefully this new article will inform more seniors who could benefit about the program and prompt the government to finally make improvements, especially at a time when deficits are growing and housing affordability is a major concern for so many.
Here are links to previous media and columns on the topic including comments from David Eby.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/property-tax-deferral-michael-geller-1.3391775
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