Clearing Up Confusion on the 2025 Property Tax Increase

We’ve noticed some chatter about property tax increases in Pickering ranging from 10 to 16 percent. Understandably, that sounds alarming - but we’re here to set the record straight!

In reality, the average total residential property tax increase for 2025 is approximately 5.26% for Pickering homeowners.

So why are some residents seeing what looks like a much higher increase?

The confusion is often tied to how property owners are calculating their new tax amounts, especially if they’re on a pre-authorized payment plan.

For residents on the Monthly Payment Plan (12 payments/year):

The annual increase is only applied to the remaining six payments (starting in July). However, some people mistakenly take the new monthly amount and multiply it across the full year - retroactively applying it from January - which overstates the actual increase.

For those on the Instalment Plan (four payments/year):

Only the final two payments (July and October) reflect the 2025 increase. Comparing the new instalment to the earlier interim amounts (February and April) without factoring in this timing can also make it seem like the total increase is much larger than it is.

If your property was renovated or altered recently:

You may see a higher increase due to reassessment by MPAC (Municipal Property Assessment Corporation). In these cases, the updated value applies only to the final 2025 bill and reflects physical changes made to the property.

To help make sense of your tax bill, refer to the explanation section on the bottom left of your statement. It clearly breaks down the change in taxes from 2024 to 2025 and shows how each portion (City, Region, Education, or Assessment) contributed to the total.

If you have questions about your specific bill, we encourage you to reach out to our Finance Department - we’re here to help.

Additional details about your property taxes 

It’s important to note that the overall bill includes levies from multiple levels of government – not just the City of Pickering.

For 2025:

• The City of Pickering’s portion of the residential property tax bill increased by 3.75%, which translates to a 1.14% increase on the total tax bill.
• The Regional Municipality of Durham approved a 7.40% tax levy increase, with 4.4% attributed to police services and 3.0% to other regional services. This results in a 4.12% impact on the total bill.

Together, these changes result in an average total residential property tax increase of approximately 5.26% for Pickering homeowners.

To better understand your tax amount, a general rule of thumb is to multiply your property’s assessed value (or recent purchase price) by the current residential tax rate.

For example:

• If your home was assessed for $586,000, your 2025 taxes would be calculated as: $586,000 × 0.01288240 (2025 residential tax rate) = $7,549.09

Please note that actual assessed values are provided by MPAC (the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation).  If you have any questions regarding your property’s assessment value, please contact MPAC. 

Despite these changes, Pickering continues to maintain the lowest residential property tax rate among Durham Region’s lakeshore municipalities, a position we've held for many years.

We also want to share some helpful programs and updates for 2025:

• Property Tax Relief: Pickering offers a property tax credit of up to $600 for low-income seniors and individuals with disabilities – the highest grant of its kind in Durham Region. Application details were included with your property tax bill.
• Payment Schedule Change: In light of ongoing economic pressures, the City has moved the typical property tax due dates from June and September to July and October, providing residents additional time to make payments.
• Flexible Payment Options: The City offers a pre-authorized payment plan, either monthly or by installment. Monthly enrolment helps spread payments across the year, and residents can still sign up to begin in July.

See below for additional information on how your property tax bill is split up.

Property tax dollars fund various programs and services including:

1. City: Fire, recreation programs, libraries, road maintenance, parks, street lights and storm sewers.
2. Education: The education tax rate is established by the Province. The local school boards are responsible for determining how school taxes are spent.
3. Region: Police, maintenance of major roads, transit, waste management, social assistance, child care, social housing, homes for the aged, public health and ambulance.

MPAC Property Assessment Notice

Your Property Assessment Notice shows the assessed value and classification of your property as of a legislated valuation date. The fixed valuation date for 2025 remains January 1, 2016 – the end of the last assessment cycle. When there is a change in a property (such as new construction or major renovation), MPAC updates the assessment and mails a Notice. The 2025 assessment is what the property would have sold for on January 1, 2016 – in its current state and condition, including any major changes since then. Think of it as this property, selling on that date.