My asociate Rob Roland wrote this article. It is excellent and brings us right up to speed on the gov’t plans to tax us to death. Thought you might find it useful.
Ontario’s New 13% Harmonized Sales Tax – How It Impacts Real Estate
Next summer (2010) the Ontario Government is set to put into force its new harmonized GST/PST sales tax which will apply a 13% sales tax to everything we purchase. some things that were not subject to the present 8% PST will now be taxed and this tax blended with the 5% GST. Ouch!
Called the Harmonized Sales Tax (HST), this new tax will apply to things like your electric bill, your gas bill, your water bill, condominium fees, insurance premiums, haircuts and every other good and service you purchase. There are almost no exemptions.
The current Ontario PST tax does not apply to services, nor does it apply to the purchase of certain goods. The new 13% tax will therefore extend the old 8% PST tax rate to the purchase of all goods and all services.
The New 13% Tax Will Apply To The Purchase of All New Homes
If a person were to purchase a new $1 million dollar home in Toronto, they would have to pay roughly $200,000 in taxes as a result of the Ontario Land Transfer Tax, the City of Toronto Land Transfer Tax and the new harmonized HST at 13%.
We have always had two things that we have always been able to count on as being tax free – things that they could use to save money and accumulate wealth- our primary residence and our RRSP. That’s it.
This tax is irresponsible and regressive and, like Toronto’s, simply a tax grab that we should all oppose now, by conversation and petition and at election time with your vote.
The New 13% Tax Will Effectively Raise Your Income Taxes
Currently, the combined Federal/Ontario income tax rates are roughly 25% on the first $20,000 of taxable income, 42% on the next $40,000 of taxable income, and 46.5% on each dollar of taxable income over $60,000. On top of that you have to add the “Fair Share Health Tax” of up to $1,000 each of us has to pay.
If the Ontario Government gets away with implementing their new harmonized GST/PST sales tax of 13%, the top effective income tax rates in Ontario will be as follows (since you can’t spend any of your tax paid dollars without paying the new harmonized 13% GST/PST tax):
38% on the first $20,000
53% on the next $40,000
59.5% on every dollar over $60,000
On top of that, you have to pay your Ontario Fair Share Health Tax, your city realty taxes, your city garbage fees, your city water fees, your city street parking permit fees, your annual Ontario and the new Toronto vehicle license plate fees, your Ontario land transfer tax, your new Toronto land transfer tax, your gasoline taxes, your liquor taxes, your air departure taxes, your entertainment taxes, and lots more.
If you are tired of being taken for granted and having government with their hand in your pockets again and again, SIGN THE PETITION AT www.unfairtaxgrab.com
and SEND THIS E-MAIL ON TO OTHERS THAT YOU KNOW so they can be part of this conversation.