First mentioned in Premier Brad Wall’s final throne speech, certain seniors in Saskatchewan are now able to defer the education portion of their property taxes for up to a decade at a time.
This is something that Saskatchewan Seniors Mechanism executive director Holly Schick said they have been pushing for.
“Many seniors own their own homes, and have a lot of money invested in those homes, but they don’t often have the cash resources,” Schick said. “So being able to defer taxes allows them to more easily maintain their homes and address ongoing costs and needs.”
The option to defer taxes will be available to anyone over the age of 65 who owns residential property. Qualifying for the loan comes with a number of conditions, such as having a household income under $70,000 annually, maintaining a minimum 25 per cent equity in the home, and having no writs or liens against the property.
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The deferred taxes will eventually have to be paid back as a loan with interest.
“This is revenue neutral for the government. This isn’t something that the government’s trying to earn money on the interest rate,” Social Services Minister Paul Merriman said.
“What we’re doing is allowing seniors more of an opportunity to age in place, in their home.”
The default deferral is ten years, and it can be extended or opted out of early. The deferral would also end if someone moves out of their property or sells it.
The loan is set up as a lien against the property.
Schick said that the interest is something people will have to consider if applying.
“They do have to pay that money eventually, but what it means is they don’t have to sell their home or mortgage their home to have the resources they need for day to day living,” she said.
Applications for this deferral are open.
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