Toronto’s residential property tax increase for 2026 is 2.2%, a significant slowdown after increases of 9.5% in 2024 and 6.9% in 2025. That 2.2% is made up of a 0.7% bump to the general operating levy and a continuing 1.5% contribution to the City Building Fund, which is dedicated to transit and housing.1City of Toronto. City of Toronto’s 2026 Budget Now Final The percentage is smaller, but it lands on top of two much larger ones, so the cumulative bill is still noticeably higher than it was three years ago.
Three Years of Increases, Side by Side
The 2024 budget was the sharpest hit in a generation. Council approved a 9.5% residential increase, split between an 8% rise in the base property tax rate and a 1.5% City Building Fund levy. A roughly $1.8-billion budget shortfall drove the decision. Multi-residential and commercial properties saw a 4.5% base increase that year, and industrial properties faced a 9% increase.
In 2025, the residential increase eased to 6.9%: a 5.4% base rate increase plus the same 1.5% City Building Fund levy.
For 2026, the 0.7% operating levy increase applies to residential and industrial properties, while multi-residential and commercial properties received a 0.35% operating increase. The 1.5% City Building Fund levy continues as a separate line item.1City of Toronto. City of Toronto’s 2026 Budget Now Final
The trajectory matters because each year’s percentage compounds on the last. A homeowner paying $4,000 in 2023 owes appreciably more in 2026 even though the annual percentage has fallen sharply.
What This Means in Dollars on Your Bill
Your total is the tax rate multiplied by your property’s assessed value. For 2026, the residential municipal tax rate is 0.605295%, with an additional 0.153% education levy on top.2City of Toronto. Property Tax Rates and Fees A home assessed at $500,000 would owe roughly $3,791 in combined municipal and education taxes before any credits.
Here is the part that surprises most owners: assessed values have not been updated since January 1, 2016. The Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC), the independent body that values every property in Ontario, was scheduled to conduct a reassessment with a 2020 valuation date, but the province postponed it during the pandemic and has not rescheduled. So 2026 taxes are still calculated on fully phased-in 2016 current value assessments.3Region of Durham. Property Assessment and the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (MPAC)
The freeze creates uneven outcomes. If your neighbourhood’s market value has climbed sharply since 2016 while your assessment is locked at the old number, you are paying less than a current valuation would produce. If your area stagnated while other parts of the city surged, you are paying a proportionally larger share. Whenever the province orders a fresh reassessment, many owners will see a shift in their bills even if the tax rate itself does not move.
What Makes Up Your Bill
A Toronto tax bill has three components, each funding a different purpose.
- The municipal levy is the largest portion. The city keeps it to fund police, fire, parks, road maintenance, transit operations, and other day-to-day services. Council sets this rate annually under the City of Toronto Act, 2006.4Ontario.ca. City of Toronto Act, 2006
- The education levy is collected by the city on behalf of the Province of Ontario to fund school boards. The provincial Minister of Finance prescribes this rate, not city council. The 2026 residential education tax rate is 0.153%.5City of Toronto. 2025 Education Property Tax Levy and Clawback Rate By-Law6Government of Ontario. Ontario Regulation 400/98 – Tax Matters, Rates for School Purposes
- The City Building Fund levy is a dedicated capital fund for expanding transit and building affordable housing. The money is ringfenced so it cannot be diverted to general operating expenses.
Each appears as a separate line on your annual statement. The distinction matters: complaints about the size of a Toronto tax bill are sometimes aimed at council when a portion of the increase is set at Queen’s Park.
2026 Payment Dates
Toronto issues two bills each year, an interim bill in January and a final bill in May, with three installment dates on each.7City of Toronto. Property Tax Bill Types The 2026 dates are:
- Interim bill: March 2, April 1, and May 1
- Final bill: July 2, August 4, and September 18City of Toronto. Property Tax Due Dates
You can pay through online banking at most major financial institutions using the 21-digit assessment roll number on your bill. Pre-authorized plans are available in 2-, 6-, or 11-installment versions. Cheques, in-person payments, and drop-box options also exist.9City of Toronto. Pay Your Property Tax Bill If your mortgage company pays your property taxes for you, forward the bill promptly; the city holds you responsible regardless of who actually submits the payment.
Miss a due date and the city applies a 1.25% charge to the outstanding balance on the first day of default, then repeats that 1.25% charge on the first of every following month until you pay.10City of Toronto. Late Tax Bill Payments Over a full year of non-payment, that reaches 15% in penalties alone. The city does not waive these charges for forgetting or for postal delays.
Relief for Low-Income Seniors and People With Disabilities
Toronto runs programs that cancel or defer property tax increases for a narrow group of homeowners. To have a tax increase cancelled, you must be a low-income senior aged 65 or older, or a person living with a disability who receives benefits from a qualifying program such as the Ontario Disability Support Program, Canada Pension Plan disability, or Workplace Safety and Insurance Board benefits. Combined household income cannot exceed $62,000.11City of Toronto. Property Tax, Water and Solid Waste Relief
If you do not qualify for cancellation but still face hardship, a deferral program lets you postpone tax increases instead of eliminating them. You still owe the money eventually. Applying online lets the Canada Revenue Agency verify your household income directly, which often removes the need to submit a paper Notice of Assessment.12City of Toronto. City of Toronto’s Property Tax and Utility Relief Programs
These programs are not open to the general public. Homeowners outside those categories pay the full increase.
The Vacant Home Tax Is Separate
Every residential property owner in Toronto must file an annual declaration of the property’s occupancy status, whether the home is occupied or not. Failing to declare carries a $250 fine.13City of Toronto. Vacant Home Tax
If your property sat vacant, the tax is 3% of the property’s current value assessment, on top of your regular property taxes. On a home assessed at $500,000, that is an extra $15,000. The declaration for the 2025 occupancy year is due by April 30, 2026.13City of Toronto. Vacant Home Tax Exemptions exist for situations such as the owner being in long-term care or the property undergoing major renovations, but the declaration itself is mandatory even when an exemption applies.