Homeowner Grant Threshold Raised to $1.285M, Grant Reduces Property Taxes for B.C. Residents
This article appeared on CBC News on January 3rd, 2012.
The B.C. government has raised the threshold for homeowner property grant to $1.285 million to accommodate rising property values.
The news comes as hundreds of thousands of annual property assessments are being prepared for B.C. property owners by the government. Last year, the threshold was $1.15 million. The grant effectively reduces the property tax paid by most B.C. homeowners by up to $1,045
Every year the province adjusts the grant to ensure 95.5 per cent of homeowners receive the full amount of the grant. Those with homes above the threshold may still be eligible for part of the grant.
“The homeowner grant provides a maximum reduction in residential property taxes on principal residences of $570 in the Capital, Greater Vancouver and Fraser Valley regional districts and $770 elsewhere in the province,” said a statement issued by the government on Tuesday.
“An additional grant of $275 is available to those who are age 65 or over, permanently disabled or a veteran of certain wars,.”
“We continue to see challenging economic times around the world. By maintaining the homeowner grant, we continue to help families with the costs of owning their homes,” said Finance Minister Kevin Falcon in the statement.
The grant is only available to Canadian citizens and to landed immigrants who normally reside in B.C.
Pritchard is located 30 minutes or 39 kilometers south east of the City of Kamloops. The majority of the properties in Pritchard are small to large acreages. There is one area where smaller city lots exist (approximately 0.25 acre lots) and are largely dominated by modular or manufactured homes. Pritchard is a rural area with few amenities close. There are a lot of recreational, outdoor activities that are easily accessible in Pritchard area.
The area of Pritchard is located along Highway #1 East of the City of Kamloops. This area is split by the Highway, one area of Pritchard rests at the valley bottom along the South Thompson River and the other area of Pritchard stretches into the southern hills and mountains. The smaller residential lots are located at the valley bottom across the Pritchard bridge on Decamillis Road, Bostock Crescent, Gerella Road, Gore Road, Anker Road and Foort Road to name a few.
There are a number of outdoors activities to enjoy in the Pritchard area. In the summer it is easy to power boat from Pritchard, up the south Thompson River to Shuswap Lake. There are a number of fishing lakes in the area, cross country skiing, off road adventures on ATV, dirtbike or snowmobile, horseback riding, canoeing, kayaking and hiking.
Cheapest is not always best. We know that’s true when we’re shopping for anything else. But we still tend to believe that lowest rate is the one and only factor in choosing a mortgage. Most Canadian homeowners would be shocked to discover that their low-rate mortgage could actually cost them more in the long run.