City staff to report on implications of failed Hamilton vacant unit tax in January

A proposed one-per cent tax on vacant residential units in Hamilton, Ont., is dead for 2024, and a councillor wants her colleagues to understand the implications of killing it during a vote last month.

The Vacant Unit Tax (VUT), seeking to discourage speculators and hopefully open up about a thousand empty units for rentals, was rejected in a surprise November vote amid the final stages of implementation.

Ward 3 Coun. Nrinder Nann, who sees the tool as a step towards addressing the housing crisis, succeeded Wednesday with a motion seeking a staff report in the new year on the implications of letting it go as well as what an acceptable deployment option looks like.

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“In my conversations with council members … it became clear to me there maybe some tremendous value in members of council asking staff to clarify information that residents appear to be confused about,” Nann said during her ask.

Last month’s bylaw vote for implementation, which for most legislation is a formality at council, was defeated in a 6-to-6 deadlock with the three councillors absent and Mayor Andrea Horwath taking herself out of the mix due to a conflict.

At issue for the dissenters was the execution of the VUT which put the burden on homeowners to fill out a declaration form stating they occupy their homes to rightfully avoid the tax.

Ward 6 Coun. Tom Jackson, who opposes the VUT altogether, likened the idea to “negative billing” some 177,000 properties to squeeze out just 1,000 that could be put back on the market for those needing accommodation.

Stoney Creek’s Brad Clark, based on personal experience, suggested forms would have gone the way of junk mail if they opted to carry out registration through the regular postal system.

“If your letter or newsletter doesn’t jump out, then it just gets thrown in with the junk newspapers,” Clark said.

Staff are expected to come forward with a report during a January General Issues Committee meeting on the implications of failing to pass the bylaw this past year along with substitute VUT delivery methods for a possible 2025 tax.