TORONTO, Dec. 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Municipal Land Transfer Taxes (MLTTs) have damaged the Canadian dream of homeownership, costing homebuyers thousands of dollars. With average home prices in the City of Toronto exceeding $1 million, the Toronto MLTT adds over $17,000 to the initial cost of purchasing a home. Together, homebuyers pay both city and provincial land transfer taxes, which double the cost of the LTT to $34,000 for the average home in Toronto, making Toronto one of the highest-taxing jurisdictions in North America when it comes to housing.
More than 35 per cent of the cost of a new home in Ontario now comes from government taxes, according to the Canadian Center for Economic Analysis. Buyers and homeowners in Toronto pay more than their fair share of taxes to the city.
Since introducing the MLTT in 2008, Toronto has increased the tax in 2017 and 2023. Each time, proponents argued that the tax would be used to make rentals and other forms of housing more affordable for residents. There is no data or evidence that higher housing taxes will make our city more affordable. In fact, homebuyer experience and market data suggest otherwise. The city cannot continue to ignore the concerns of those who want to enter the property market but cannot.
MLTT suppresses housing supply by adding thousands of dollars to the cost of listing a home for sale. Increasing taxes on more expensive homes costing more than $3 million is limiting the supply of resale properties, creating headwinds in Toronto's housing market. This gives higher-income buyers a greater incentive to compete with first-time homebuyers and younger residents for more affordable homes.
Instead of raising Toronto home taxes again, City Council should prioritize helping those struggling with housing costs, especially first-time homebuyers. Toronto has not increased or adjusted the MLTT rebate for first-time homebuyers since 2016, forcing first-time homebuyers with limited funds to pay more than $25,000 in land transfer taxes for an average-priced home. Making life more affordable for Torontonians starts with providing hope for the thousands of young people and families trying to enter the city's property market.
We urge City Council to reject this latest proposed increase to Toronto's MLTT and instead, as TRREB has called in the past, apply the additional revenue generated by the City following the introduction of additional MLTT rate thresholds to increase the MLTT rebate for first-time homebuyers.
Elehia Barry-Sproule
President of TRREB
Media inquiries:
For all media inquiries please email. [email protected].
ABOUT TRREB:
Toronto Regional Real Estate Board is Canada's largest real estate council with over 70,000 residential and commercial professionals connecting people, real estate, and communities.
.jpg?w=150&resize=150,150&ssl=1 "The Dishonorable Strikes on Venezuelan Boats")
