Image Credit: ADOBE STOCK
January 30, 2020 - 4:45 PM
From Kamloops to Cranbrook, Vernon to Penticton, most property owners have the same choice – pay your property taxes by July 1 or get hit with a 10 per cent penalty.
Except in Kelowna.
It is provincial law that the 10 per cent fee has to be levied but, in 2001, the City of Kelowna passed a bylaw that allowed the penalty to be phased in. Currently, the late penalty is five per cent, climbing to 10 per cent only if a second due date in August is missed.
“Taxpayers of Kelowna have a proven record of paying on time, with 90 per cent of taxpayers paying by the first (July) due date and another four per cent paying by the second (August) due date,” states a report recommending the change. It's going to Kelowna city council on Monday, Feb. 3.
When it comes to the total value of taxes paid by July 1, that actually represents 95 per cent of the City’s tax revenue as people with larger bills tend to pay on time and avoid the premium.
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