Property Tax

Property Assessments

The responsibility for property assessments in the Province of BC lies with the BC Assessment office. Assessable properties are placed into one or more of the following classes:

1. Residential
2. Utilities
3. Supportive Housing
4. Major Industry             
5. Light Industry
6. Business & Other
7. Managed Forest Land
8. Recreational/Non-Profit Organization
9. Farm

Present use is the primary determining factor in the placement of property (e.g. single family dwelling situated on land zoned commercial would be classed as residential). However, raw land is generally classified according to intended use; therefore, zoning plays an important role in determining the class.

Assessment notices regarding property value of land and improvements in the Province of BC are sent out at the end of December each year by the BC Assessment office and are used for taxation purposes for the next year (these values do not originate from the District). The total of current taxes is derived from taking the assessed value as determined by the BC Assessment office and multiplying that value by the tax rate of each taxing authority.

Any further inquiries with regards to assessments should be directed to the Kelowna BC Assessment office at 250-763-8300.

Municipal Taxes

The formula for calculating taxes on property is:

Tax rate x assessed value

The tax rate is expressed as a dollar amount on every $1,000 of assessed value. If the tax mill rate for residential property is 5.59, this means that taxes of $5.59 are charged on every $1,000 of assessed value. Residential property valued at $100,000 would thus be charged taxes of $559.00 (5.59 multiplied by 100,000 and then divided by 1,000)

The assessed value of property for tax purposes is determined by the British Columbia Assessment Authority. The Authority is established under provincial legislation, and is independent of the municipality. The District of West Kelowna is not involved in determining assessed values.

Taxation on property is the primary source of municipal revenue. The Local Government Act and The Community Charter, which are Provincial Acts, set out in detail the regulations for property taxation. The amount of money to be raised through taxation is set by Council through the budget process, but other aspects of the taxation process, such as the due date for taxes and the penalty on late taxes, are regulated by both these Provincial Acts.

Council does not have the power to adjust the taxes on individual properties. The taxes are set by the tax rate which applies to that class of property. For instance, if the tax rate for residential property is 5.59, then ALL residential properties must be charged this rate.

The tax mill rates for every municipality in British Columbia are posted by The Ministry of Community and Rural Development on this website.

Property tax notices are issued each year in May to all registered owners for taxes covering the period of January 1 to December 31 of the current year.

If a tax notice has not been received by June 15th, please contact the Tax Department at Municipal Hall. This may occur due to a recent purchase of property whereby the notice was sent to the previous owner or mailed to an old address. If a sale of property occurs during the year, property taxes are adjusted by either a notary or lawyer. The District of West Kelowna is not responsible for adjustment of taxes.

The District collects certain General & Parcel Taxes (based on Bylaws) and is also authorized as a collection agent for the following authorities:

Gross taxes include the total of all the above levies.

Municipal taxes are due during the first week of July. The 2010 tax due date is July 7, 2010. Any outstanding balance after the deadline date is subject to a 10% penalty. (An unclaimed home owner grant is considered to be outstanding taxes.)

Registered owners, who are eligible, are responsible for claiming the home owner grant, even though a mortgage company may be paying their taxes. Also, for those who have made pre-payments towards their tax account, it is their responsibility to claim the home owner grant before the tax deadline date, if they are eligible.

After the deadline date, no further penalties are applied to current taxes until after December 31st, at which time interest is added to the outstanding balances. Interest rates on outstanding balances are calculated at rates set triannually (3 times per year) by the Provincial Government.

Any property with delinquent taxes (taxes outstanding from 2 years prior to the current year) is sold at Tax Sale the last Monday of September at 10:00 am unless delinquent taxes with interest are sooner paid. Information regarding these properties is available the middle of September.