City Clarifies Who Has The Most Tax Arrears

During Monday afternoon’s Council it was stated that commercial properties were responsible for the majority of property tax arrears - that is incorrect.

On Tuesday morning the City clarified that the majority of property tax arrears was in the residential area.

Residential property tax arrears were $1,371,815.58 while commercial property tax arrears was $405,102.14 on December 31, 2023. See chart below.

Breakdown of property tax arrears on December 31, 2023 - source City of Moose Jaw

In their clarification the City did state that commercial property tax arrears have increased since 2022 and comprise 21 percent of property tax arrears with the remainder being residential.

The City further pointed out that during the pandemic commercial property tax arrears were almost equal to residential property tax arrears.

No reason was given to the rise of property tax arrears on residential properties but many residents have expressed their concerns about inflation, the higher cost of living and the carbon tax.