If the unit owners at your condo are sick and tired of paying municipal taxes on the same basis as single family houses and not receiving commensurate local services, your corporation needs to join Canadian Condominium Institute in order to do something about it.

Despite the fact that there are over 6,000 condominium corporations in Ontario which house hundreds of thousands of voters, politicians of all levels and stripes pay little heed to the plight of the condo dwellers.  This is primarily because any individual condominium holds little clout or influence.  Only by banding together can meaningful change be achieved.

CCI and some of its Ontario chapters have made impressive inroads on the topic of fair municipal taxation in the past year and have built upon the hard work of a small group of condo directors in Markham who got the attention of local council.  We featured a guest post on that group’s progress, here.

Through strength in numbers and the volunteer efforts of condo directors and professionals and the hardworking executive at the various chapters, CCI’s efforts are reaching a point of critical mass. To continue this good work, it’s vital that a strong front be presented to make the case for sweeping changes province-wide to address the inequities of the current municipal tax regime and to achieve fairness for condo owner taxpayers.

Take action today.  Get your condo corporation to join your local CCI chapter.

Condo corporation members of the CCI Toronto Chapter can (and should!) attend a special seminar just prior to the chapter’s annual general meeting on November 25, 2010.   Details below. Events like this may be taking place across the province in coming months.

Fair Taxation for Condominiums

Condominium units, by their density, use proportionately less City services — lighting, sewers, etc. — than do a comparable number of single-family homes, and their ecological footprint is also smaller. In addition, some condominiums pay to maintain their own sewers, streetlights, etc., and provide such services as garbage pick-up. Yet, they are taxed at the same rate as single-family homes. This is a significant inequity. Much is being done across the Province to urge the Government to deal with this inequity. Come out to hear from condo leaders from various municipalities and learn what you can do to assist in the effort to  eliminate this tax inequity!

CCI presents this evening session with featured guest speakers, Armand Conant, CCI Toronto Chapter President, Al Siaroff, CCI Golden Horseshoe Chapter Board Member, Ed Schollen, Markham Association of Townhome Condominium Owners, and moderated by Bob Girard, Chair, CCI Toronto Special Projects Committee.

A not-to-be-missed session, which will take place immediately prior to CCI Toronto’s Annual General Meeting. Attendance is complimentary, however, pre-registration is required. This session is open to CCI Toronto members only.