Delta homeowners who saw their assessments shoot over the threshold for the provincial homeowner grant got some good news this week.
The province announced it's increasing the threshold from $1.2 million to $1.6 million. That means most Delta homeowners who saw dramatic increases in assessed values won't be missing out on the $570 grant.
The grant for a primary residence was being phased out for properties worth more than $1.2 million and eliminated entirely when the property value reached just beyond $1.3 million.
The red hot real estate market last year had pushed many homes above that threshold, which meant they would lose the grant unless the province increased the limit.
Metro Vancouver, Delta Mayor Lois Jackson and Delta South MLA Vicki Huntington all called on Victoria to take action.
Huntington told the Optimist this week she expected the province to increase that threshold, especially with this being an election year.
"People, especially seniors, are caught in their homes and through no fault of their own their assessments climbed rapidly like that. It should help a lot of them," she said.
In 2016, following another dramatic rise in assessments, the government increased the threshold from $1.1 million to $1.2 million. At the time, around 91 per cent of homeowners in the province qualified for the grant.
The Ministry of Finance notes that low-income homeowners can apply for a low-income supplement, which replaces any reduction in the grant caused by having a property valued over the threshold. The low-income supplement is available to seniors, certain veterans or their surviving spouse and persons with disabilities.
The province also notes the property tax deferment program provides lowinterest loans that allow qualifying homeowners to defer property taxes until they sell or transfer ownership of their home, or it becomes part of an estate.
