Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "An
Interesting Perspective":
How many developers do you know that
aren't wealthy?
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The question asked was about how taxes on housing had increased in the last forty years.
My answer is not presented as an analytical survey.
Nor about the wealth of developers.
I know of developers who have grown from small beginnings to apparent wealth.
I know some who failed in the business .
I know one who went bankrupt and lost everything.
Another who wasn't able to hang on long enough for the big return.
I know people who think development is a gold mine.
I know people with families, who lost their jobs because of downturns in the housing industry.
I know of a planner, seconded to the region, because of no work for him in our department.
I know, in speaking of developers' profits, we are not speaking of reducing them through taxes, lot levies and fees for processing land development plans..
Cost are overheads. Only the consumer pays .
The idea municipalities and politicians are biting into developers' profits is fanciful at best.
At worst it's a sleazy unintelligent justification for money grab. .
We tell developers we must take money to save current residents from the cost of growth.
When was the last time you saw reduction or a stable rate in you property tax?
Did you not notice a 12% increases in water and sewer rates in 2010 and 11% in 2011 and again in 2012. You will be hit again again in 2013 and 2014.
When will you notice?
We take water from the ground and Lake Ontario. We don't manufacture it. It's ours for the taking.
Why does the price of water go up at that rate ?
What does it take to understand, there's something seriously wrong with the equation?
Millions are taken from developers to keep the rates down. But rates are not down.
Millions more are taken out of our pockets by the people we elected.
The Mayor says "water is the best bargain we get"
In a pig's ear, it is.
A bargain is not how I would describe it.
ReplyDelete"Value of a property is what a buyer is willing to pay."
Don't agree.
Value is what a reasonable person can afford to pay. Big difference.
The past six or more years have witnessed a huge housing bubble and bust in the U.S., U.K., Ireland, Greece, Spain, Portugal and many other countries. In Las Vegas, house prices dropped 65%. The direct result of creating artificial and dubious assets out of thin air, similar to a Central Bank creating money where none previously existed.
We were fortunate in Canada because our banks and our Central Bank were not as stupid and as greedy as those in other countries.
The longest amortization term on Canadian home mortgages has been reduced to 25 years from 35. This is to make home-ownership costlier in terms of monthly payments and to cool ever-increasing housing prices. And it's working. Check Vancouver and Toronto.
But to your point:
Development fees are supposed to pay for the services required for new housing, roads, water and sewers, hydro, leisure facilities. They are not meant meant to apply against existing housing and the servicing for same.
Development fees don't increase taxes, an increased cost of municipal government does. Why does local government cost more and more each year? You and your fellow councillors are in the best position to answer this. And Staff!
I am not sure if the person who asked the question about wealthy developers was being deliberately slow or not. The problem is not with developers, the biggest of whom can sit on property for years. The difficulties lie in the trickle-down effect in which all the servicing tradespeople get hit, framers, roofers, a long line of small fry. The economy is rocky at best - a rise in house prices of that amount is going to impact the average working individual, not just prospective purchasers.
ReplyDeleteOtherwise the comment was dumb. There are large developers and small ones. Of course, they aren't all wealthy.
Maybe the individual enamoured by ' wealthy developers ' believes that they just sprang forth from the heads of the gods And that to be a developer means guaranteed wealth. A blinkered view. And a sad stereotype. Last Council residue?
ReplyDelete"A blinkered view. And a sad stereotype."
ReplyDeleteMuch like the characterization of Cultural Centre visitors that is perpetuated here.