“World's Most Complete Neighborpedia”
Explore:   What's happening in your neck of the woods?

Uxbridge, ON

Local Uxbridge Information And Web Directory

Kathy   Clulow  ASP® SRES®: Real Estate Agent in Uxbridge, ON

Local Uxbridge Information

and

Local Web Directories for
For The Communities of
Uxbridge | Port Perry / Scugog
Whitchurch / Stouffville | Georgina

Check Out Homes For Sale
On My Listing Web Site

To learn more about what housing options
Uxbridge has to offer;
be it condominium or detached homes,
in town or rural communities, country homes,
estates or farms just give me a call or

THE BEST WAY TO CONTACT ME

Text My Cell Phone

I will respond ASAP
However I do not answer when driving
or when with Clients

You and "YOUR" Property Tax Bill -- One Alternative

Barrie Clulow: Real Estate - Other in Uxbridge, ON

In an earlier post You and "YOUR" Property Tax Bill -- Is Current Value Assessment (CVA) A Better Way? I looked at our current assessment system and the unfairness of it for many taxpayers.

Today's example looks at the Durham Region Portion of Your Tax Bill from the point of view taken by some who feel a head tax is more appropriate than property tax for raising taxes locally.

THE BACKGROUND

Regional Taxes Paid In Millions

It is interesting to note that while the three northern communities paid the smallest portion of the overall region tax bite they also have the smallest populations. Meanwhile Oshawa which has the largest population also pays the highest portion of the overall tax bite.

Population 2006 census

In looking at the two charts above you will notice very little movement in the location on the chart or the size of their piece of the pie for each contributing community.

HEAD TAX EXAMPLE

Taxes Per Capita

This changes dramatically if you look at the taxes paid on a per capita basis Uxbridge suddenly jumps to the top with over 131% of the average per capita while Oshawa drops to the bottom with almost 88% of the average per capita.

If you agreed with the supporters of a head tax being a better way than our current system it would appear that Uxbridge pays far more than it's fair share to the Region.

THE QUESTION:

DO YOU THINK A HEAD TAX IS A MORE APPROPRIATE METHOD FOR RAISING TAXES LOCALLY THAN PROPERTY TAXES BASED ON MARKET VALUES?

Some disadvantages to a head tax

While both systems have inherit flaws It is not as easy to quantify the number of people living in a home as it is the value of the home
How would you make up for the 8% to 20% of the taxes currently paid for by local business

Taxes paid and the 2006 census figures are from the article:
North Durham: Drain or Gain by Jeff Hayward in the Uxbridge Times Journal November 12th 2009
Jeff was looking at the northern communities to see if they were a drain or a gain for the Region.
In looking at the figures he uses it would seem that Uxbridge taxpayers may be carrying more than their share.

Stay Tuned --- .

Earlier posts in the series

You and "YOUR" Property Tax Bill -- My Prescription Provided Pain Relief
You and "YOUR" Propertry Tax Bill -- Assessment Errors Can Be Costly
Understanding Residential Property Assessment in Ontario - #7 in a series on property taxes
You and "YOUR" Property Tax Bill -- Is Your Assessment Fair and Equitable
You and "YOUR" Property Tax Bill -- OUCH!!!!!
You and "YOUR" Property Tax Bill -- Your Assessment Notice Is In The Mail
You and "YOUR" Property Tax Bill -- Mill Rate Idiosyncrasy's
You and "YOUR" Property Tax Bill -- Is Current Value Assessment (CVA) A Better Way?
You and "YOUR" Property Tax Bill -- Who Takes The Biggest Bite?

It will be interesting to watch what happens to

"Your" Property Tax Bill

With province wide re-assessment affecting
your 2009 property tax bill.

Weighty Words - Wisdom / Want

Kathy   Clulow  ASP® SRES®: Real Estate Agent in Uxbridge, ON

Weighty Words - Wisdom / Want

"Wisdom is knowledge of what is true or right coupled with just judgment as to action; sagacity, discernment, or insight." Wikipedia

"In economics, a want is something that is desired. It is said that people have unlimited wants, but limited resources. Each person has wants. You might want a laptop while your best friend may want a desktop computer. Thus, people cannot have everything they want and must look for the best alternatives which they can afford." Wikipedia

In the purchase or sale of Real Estate these words carry a lot of weight and consequences. If size mattered the scales would always tip towards wisdom but unfortunately wants often outweigh the wisdom when it comes to buying or selling your home.

When we talk to sellers we often hear I need or want to get X amount of dollars for my home. Sometimes the want out weighs the wisdom of the information provided by the agent to help a seller determine the best price that will get them the most money possible, in the shortest time and with the least inconvienence possible. When they go with their wants, they often end up having their home on the market for long periods of time and ultimately end up selling for less.

Buyers, on the other hand, who look at and sometimes buy homes based on their unrealistic wants without the wisdom of what they can truly afford, risk losing it all when money gets tight for unforseen reasons.

Wisdom or want, which way should we lean? The smart comsumer follows wisdom, the foolish often give in to their wants.


Put Kathy's 35 Plus Years
Of Wisdom To Work For You
To Help You Fill Your Wants
when Buying or Selling in
Uxbridge,Port Perry/Scugog
Whitchurch Stouffville, Balantrae,
Georgina and Brock.

Just Give Kathy A Call

Check Out Homes Currently For Sale On Kathy's
Listing Web Site
Let Kathy Find You A Home
To learn more about what housing options Uxbridge
has to offer; be it condominium or detached homes,
in town or rural communities,
country homes, estates or farms just give Kathy a call or

THE BEST WAY TO CONTACT KATHY
Text My Cell Phone

I will respond ASAP
However I do not answer when driving
or when with Clients


Demographics - Our Aging Population

Kathy   Clulow  ASP® SRES®: Real Estate Agent in Uxbridge, ON

Demographics - Our Aging Population

Demographics play a major role in the housing market

Changes in new housing styles and size over the years have been driven by many factors. Currently the major driving force is our aging population. As our population ages the need for new nursing homes and seniors residences continue to grow, but what about the empty nesters who are not ready for that yet.

Today's young seniors are being draw to senior communities, with homes built for their active lifestyle. some are built around golf courses while others are built in areas that had traditionally been cottage country being located on or near our numerous lakes. Often these homes are bungalow in design but unlike the older smaller utilitarian style bungalows of the past they are much larger and more open concept. They are built for a generation that grew up in smaller homes, got married, had families of their own and moved into larger homes. Homes that had 4 and five bedrooms, family rooms, eat in kitchens or great rooms. Homes that had fireplaces, double or triple car garages, multiple bathrooms and much more.

Now it is time to down size, they no longer need four and five bedrooms and all the other features that came with their 2,000 plus square foot homes. Unwilling to give up many of the other features that came with that home they start looking for a newer bigger version of the home they grew up in "The Bungalow".

The bungalow is making comeback, it is the same in name only. Today's bungalows have all the features of those large family homes, but they are 2 to 3 times the size of the bungalows the past generation enjoyed. Open concept is the new norm with spacious principal rooms and light airy interiors, featuring large windows with mulitple walkouts outs to bring the outside in. Luxury appointments with hardwood throughout, gourmet kitchens and the latest in bathrooms give these new bungalows a luxury resort feel.

A Visual Demonstration of our Changing Demographics

You often read about our changing demographics and how our population is getting older but have you ever been able to visualize the change.

David Foot of Footworks Consulting has an animated pyramid that visually demonstrates how the makeup of our population has changed over the years and will continue to change in the future.

David K. Foot is a professor of economics at the University of Toronto, and co-author of the Boom, Bust and Echo books.

For those who like to see the hard numbers:


For Seniors Friendly Housing
In The Communities of
Uxbridge,Port Perry/Scugog
Whitchurch Stouffville, Balantrae,
Georgina and Brock.

Just Give Me A Call

Check Out The Listings
On My Listing Web Site
Let Me Find You A Home
To learn more about what housing options Uxbridge
has to offer; be it condominium or detached homes,
in town or rural communities,
country homes, estates or farms just give me a call or

THE BEST WAY TO CONTACT ME

Text My Cell Phone

I will respond ASAP
However I do not answer when driving
or when with Clients


Uxbridge Remembers Those Who Gave All

Kathy   Clulow  ASP® SRES®: Real Estate Agent in Uxbridge, ON

Uxbridge Remembers Those Who Gave All ...

... with a Remembrance Day parade November 11th starting at 10.40 and Service at the Cenotaph afterward. This is but one way of paying tribute the more than 100,000 men and women who have given their all.

Our local papers paid tribute and remembrance to those who served with articles about why it is important that we do remember and the part Canada and Canadians played in the wars. In one article the author Roger Varley tells a story about Cyril Allison, who later became a resident of Uxbridge, being the first person to have read the poem "In Flanders fields" right after it was written by John McCrae.

Local Author and Journalist Ted Barris,provided further insights utilizing excerpts from his new book "Breaking the Silence". He talks about Local resident Steve Bell's escape from a German POW camp only to be thrown into a forced march as a "prisoner" of the Russians and his ultimate escape. Barris also related a part of an interview he had in Uxbridge with one of the survivors , Cpl. Brian Decaire, of the "friendly fire incident" in Afghanistan.

Poppy Field by Kathy Clulow

"To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high."

from the poem
In Flanders fields.
- Lt.-Col. John McCrae -

Canadian Students are picking up the torch

Canadian students have had an opportunity to walk in the footsteps of those who went before, with a number of tours over the years They have been given an opportunity to see the places where the events actually took place, to hear the stories. ... To walk through history, to learn an appreciation for those who paid the ultimate price and to remember; today, tomorrow, even years from now so that they will to be able to pass it on to the next generation.

Students at Uxbridge Secondary School are preparing for a history lesson like no other. An educational field trip in May that is tied in with the 65th anniversary commemorating"Victory in Europe".

Students Raising Funds

Students Raising Funds For The Tour At The Uxbridge Fall Fair

The National student tour coordinator is Dave Robinson, a recently retired teacher who taught at Port Perry High School, he has organized several educational tours over the last few years. In 2004 he coordinated a group of 150 teachers and students who attended the D-Day anniversary at Juno Beach. Other tours included France in April of 2007 for the 90th anniversary of the battle of Vimey Ridge; Hong Kong to commemorate the Canadian Soldiers who gave it all in 1941; and a walk in the footsteps of Canadian Soldiers through the streets of Ortona and the Liri Valley.

For some of the students the tour will be following in the footsteps of their grandfathers and great grandfathers who participated in the liberation of the Netherlands. They will remember.

Poppies By Kathy Clulow