WHO DETERMINES THE ASSESSED VALUE OF
PROPERTIES IN MANITOBA?
The
Province of Manitoba, through Assessment Services, is responsible for all real
and personal property assessments in the province, excluding property in the
City of Winnipeg.
HOW ARE ASSESSMENTS DETERMINED?
In
Manitoba, property is assessed at market value. Market value is the most probable selling price
of the property. Regular reassessments
are done every 2 years to ensure that property assessments keep pace with real
estate market conditions.
Assessment notices are prepared by Provincial Assessment Services in the fall of each year for the following taxation year. The values are based on market values from 2 years prior.
On new construction, Assessment Services may physically inspect the property. If buildings are removed a demolition permit should be obtained from the Portage la Prairie Planning District (at no charge) and the assessment branch will be notified in order to remove this assessment.
WHAT IS A MILL RATE?
Property taxes are calculated by
applying municipal and school mill rates against the portioned assessment of
your property. By definition, a mill is
a one-thousandth part. For calculating
taxes, one mill represents $1.00 of taxes for every $1,000.00 of portioned
assessment. The municipal tax rate (mill
rate) is based on the budgeted amount of tax dollars the municipality requires
to meet its obligations in the current year. The total tax dollar requirement
is spread over the entire assessment base for the RM.
HOW DO I CALCULATE MY TAXES?
DOES ALL THE MONEY COLLECTED BY THE MUNICIPALITY STAY WITHIN THE MUNICIPALITY?
No, the
property taxes collected are comprised of municipal taxes and school taxes. The municipal taxes are collected for the
municipal operations. School taxes are
collected by the municipality on behalf of the school divisions and forwarded
on to the various school divisions Your tax statement shows the breakdown between
municipal and school taxes.
HOW DOES THE MUNICIPALITY DETERMINE
THE TAX REQUIREMENT?
Annually
the municipality goes through a budgeting process. All areas of the budget are reviewed to
determine the needs for the upcoming year. Increases have to be accounted for, new
initiatives, cost of living, etc., as well as reducing expenses to offset the
increases if possible. The municipality
knows the importance of being fiscally responsible with taxation while still
maintaining or increasing services. This
is a challenge that is faced annually. The
municipality holds a public meeting annually to discuss the budget. The public is encouraged to attend this
meeting as it is important to be able to express any concerns you may have or
to ask questions. The date of this
meeting is advertised in the local paper as well as on our website.
www.rmofportage.ca