City of Cranbrook council last night unanimously agreed to direct city administrative staff to set tax rates for 2022, including an average increase of 2.75% to residential and 0.8% increase to commercial property owners in 2022.

Proposed tax rates were reviewed for all property classes in Cranbrook in 2022, changing the rates against the varied rising assessed values to balance the tax burden across the property classes. This rebalancing will see business property owners’ municipal tax bill increase by 0.8%, while residential property owners will see a 2.75% increase on average.

B.C. Assessment notices mailed at the beginning of the year, showed that the average assessed value of a single-family home in Cranbrook increased from $327,000 in 2021 to $397,000, based on the new 2022 value. The 2.75% increase to the tax levy results in an average $63 increase to the municipal tax bill of the average residential property

Those residential or business property owners whose assessment increased more than the average will see their taxes go up more than 2.75% and 0.8% respectively. Conversely, if a property owner’s assessment were below the average increase in Cranbrook, the property owner would see less than 2.75% or 0.8% of an increase in their annual property taxes.

Council approved the City of Cranbrook 2022-2026 Five Year Financial Plan in February 2022, which is a 1.75% general tax increase and one per cent dedicated road tax for the 2022 Capital Roads Program, for a total 2.75% tax levy increase.

It was council’s focus throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to limit financial burdens on taxpayers while still looking ahead and planning for the future.

Cranbrook’s total tax increase of the combined 1.75% tax increase plus the one per cent road tax is lower than most other comparable communities in British Columbia in 2022.

Below is a list of municipalities that have publicly proposed the following tax increases:

Campbell River  (3.13%);

Kelowna  (3.64%);

Creston  (3.65%);

Salmon Arm  (4.00%);

Squamish  (4.10%);

Lake Country  (5.88%);

Kimberley  (4.71%);

Terrace  (5.52%);

Penticton  (5.70%);

Vernon  (6.88%).

The city’s 2.75% tax levy increase pertains only to the municipal portion of a property owner’s tax bill. The city also collects on behalf of School District No. 5, the Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK), Kootenay East Regional Hospital District (KERHD), and B.C. Assessment.

The proposed 2022 tax rates bylaw will be back to council for three readings on May 9 and adoption on May 12.

Coun. Mike Peabody said the proposed tax rate is “a responsible budget.”

Property tax notices for 2022 will be arriving in the mail by mid-May 2022.

Please read the Proposed 2022 City of Cranbrook Tax Rates report.

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