Ontario Development Charges by City
Development charges are a political powderkeg in Ontario, as all levels of government, including cities, are tasked with balancing housing affordability with the need to provide revenues to build infrastructure and provide services.
What are Development Charges?
Development charges are levied on new construction, including residential, commercial and industrial.
Most municipalities break down development charges into local, upper-tier and education components, similar to property taxes.
We have included those components, and calculated total charges for the highest area and level of services within the municipality in order to make comparisons easier. For example, some have different rates for areas in their municipality that have municipal sewer and water versus rural areas that do not.
What are Development Charges for?
The concept of adding development charges to new construction is to fund growth-oriented capital projects related to that construction.
Critics of development charges point out that many places in Canada and even in Ontario manage just fine without any development charges at all.
They also question the list of projects that are often included in the budget process, and their timelines. For example, if a community centre were planned to be built ten years forward, is it really realistic to include in the list of capital projects when it is highly likely to be changed or shelved in that time frame.
Which Cities in Ontario Have the Highest Development Charges?
It is interesting that some of the cities that rank among the highest in development charges have some of the lowest property tax rates.
Vaughan tops the list, for now. We will update this as we expand the list over time.
Compare Development Charges by City in Ontario
Here is a table containing current development charges for cities in the Greater Toronto Area. It will be expanded to include other major cities in Ontario.
The small condo category is for 1 bedroom or less apartment units, and the large condo category is for 2 or more bedroom units.
There are other categories, including for non-residential construction. Consult the municipality website for details on more information.
Related articles:
Property Tax Calculator - Durham Region
Why are Property Tax Rates so High in Oshawa?
Ontario Property Tax by City 2024
If you see an update for a municipality on this page, kindly send me an email with a link to the municipality web page to johnowen@remax.net
About the Author
John Owen, Broker, RE/MAX Impact
Direct - 905-434-0067
Email - johnowen@remax.net
John is an award-winning RE/MAX broker based in Courtice, ON.
Member - RE/MAX Hall of Fame, Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA), Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB).
