Change in the Tax Status of Your Home, and How it Impacts You:
In 2022, the ownership of your home was transferred from Toronto Community Housing Corporation (“TCHC”) to Circle Community LandTrust (“Circle”). As part of the transfer process, Circle was granted exemption from paying municipal property taxes on all our properties, including the home where you live. This means that as of 2022, the City no longer charges property taxes on your home.
How does this affect me?
When filing annual income taxes, many tenants apply for the Ontario Trillium Benefit (“OTB”), which includes a number of provincial tax credits. One of the credits that makes up the OTB is the Ontario Energy and Property Tax Credit (“OEPTC”). In order to be eligible for the OEPTC, a tenant must live in a building that is subject to municipal property tax. Since your home became exempt from these taxes during 2022, you are no longer eligible to claim the OEPTC.
If I claim the OEPTC even though I am not eligible, will the Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) adjust the claim for me?
To our knowledge, the CRA does not always verify the tax status of a residence at the time of filing. This has meant that some Tenants who live in tax-exempt buildings have mistakenly collected the OEPTC for years, and then have been asked to pay it back to the CRA years later. So, it is important to make sure that you are only applying for tax credits that you are eligible for, otherwise you may be required to pay money back to the CRA.
What steps should I take?
Filing your taxes correctly is your responsibility. We recommend that tenants work with a tax preparer or accountant, or connect with one of the free or discounted tax clinics at the end of this letter, so that they can advise you on which credits you are eligible for. Most of these clinics require advance registration. We recommend that you bring a copy of this letter to show the person helping prepare your taxes.
You can also go to your local library and ask if they will be running a tax clinic this year.
If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact our Tenant Services Department at tenantservices@circlelandtrust.ca, or 437-781-8432 ext 2.
Free and Discounted Tax Clinics – Downtown/East Toronto
Applegrove Community Complex – 60 Woodfield Rd (Queen St E & Greenwood)
mseto@applegrovecc.ca
416-461-5046
https://www.applegrovecc.ca/programs-services/community-programs/
Toronto Reference Library – 789 Yonge Street
trlbus@tpl.ca
416-393-7149
WoodGreen Community Services – 815 Danforth Ave (at Pape Ave)
taxclinic@woodgreen.org
416-645-6000 ext. 1187
https://www.woodgreen.org/programs/income-tax-clinic
Free and Discounted Tax Clinics – Scarborough/Malvern
Agincourt Community Services – Multiple locations near Kennedy Rd & Hwy 401
acsatax@agincourtcommunityservices.com
416-321-6912 ext. 238
https://www.agincourtcommunityservices.com/access-financial-empowermentand-tax-clinics
Malvern Family Resouces Centre – 90 Littles Rd, Scarborough, ON M1B 5E2
416-281-1376 Ext 0
The Second Chance Foundation – 3171 Eglinton Ave E (Eglinton & Kingston Rd)
taxes@thesecondchancefoundation.ca
416-792-6702 ext. 11
www.thesecondchancefoundation.ca
Malvern Christian Assembly – 6705 Sheppard Ave E (Sheppard E & Neilson Rd)
apfycentre@gmail.com
416-208-5396
Tenant Insurance
Please note that tenant insurance is a required part of your lease agreement with Circle. Click here to learn more about Tenant Insurance.
