Toronto, December 6, 2011 –REALTORS® will be making a presentation on Wednesday December 7 to the City of Toronto's Budget Committee, and will be providing City Council with results of a recent poll showing that, even after recent difficult debates on the future of City services, Torontonians continue to want fiscal reform at City Hall, including the repeal of the Toronto Land Transfer Tax and concessions from the City's unions. The poll was conducted by Ipsos Reid for the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) between November 17 and November 22, 2011. "TREB supports the recommended 2012 Budget because it continues the process of bringing fiscal sustainability back to City Hall; however, while we support the direction of this Budget, we are pointing out that it does not begin the process of fulfilling Mayor Ford's commitment to repeal the Toronto Land Transfer Tax in 2012.
This is a commitment that is strongly supported by Torontonians,” said Richard Silver, TREB President.
The poll found that,
65 per cent of Torontonians continue to support Mayor Ford’s commitment to repeal the Toronto Land Transfer Tax. Even when asked to consider the City’s deficit and recent efforts to address it, public support for the repeal of this tax is at 57 per cent; Torontonians want to see respect for taxpayers during negotiations with City Unions: 67 per cent believe that City negotiators should seek concessions from the unions; 57 per cent would like to see an end to current job security provisions; and 54 per cent would support a lock-out if union representatives do not agree to concessions; in contrast to the public’s strong opposition to the Land Transfer Tax, 52% of Torontonians support increasing residential property taxes as part of the solution to addressing the City’s deficit and paying for services; and, 54%, a majority, believe that City spending on programs and services is cost-effective and efficient. This is an increase of 9 per cent , from 45 per cent to 54 per cent, since April, 2011 when Ipsos Reid last measured this sentiment for TREB, indicating an apparent shift in attitude.
“Notwithstanding the difficult decisions that City Council has faced with regard to the budget, Torontonians understand that the Land Transfer Tax is part of the problem because it unfairly forces home buyers and business owners to pay more than their fair share, costing the average Toronto home buyer more than $6,000 every time they move; it is an unpredictable revenue stream that goes up and down with the real estate market; and it makes the City less competitive than other GTA municipalities,” said Silver. “The Land Transfer Tax is simply a band aid that has delayed the true solutions to the City’s financial challenges.”
These poll results were gathered from 401 residents of the City of Toronto, yielding a margin of error of +/- 4.9 percentage points 19 times out of 20.
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