Land + buildings
$6,600($600,000 + $1,600,000) × 0.3%
Annual municipal property levy in this exampleLand Value Tax for British ColumbiaLower the tax on
Lower the tax on
what people build.
Replace municipal taxes on land and buildings with a levy on land value alone. A well-designed shift could reduce bills for developed properties and remove the recurring tax penalty on improvements.
See the proposal and a $2,400 saving ↓One proposal · a different tax base
Keep buildings out of the tax bill.
Municipal property value taxes generally apply to the assessed value of both land and improvements. That means a new building, addition or renovation can add to the taxable value.
Our proposal shifts that base to the land itself. The value of the building is excluded, so owners can put a site to better use without an additional land-value levy just because they improved it.
The aim is to replace the municipal property levy through a funded transition. Local services still need reliable revenue; the final land rate, exemptions and municipal funding arrangements must be costed before implementation.
Buildings & improvementsExcluded from the proposed land-only levy
Land valueThe location and site remain taxable
A worked example · Canadian dollarsOne developed property.
One developed property.
$2,400 less each year.
Illustrative apartment-building property. Not an average BC home or an actual tax assessment.
Take a property with $600,000 in land and $1.6 million in buildings. Compare an illustrative municipal rate of $3 per $1,000 of total assessed value with the party’s 0.7% land-only rate scenario.
Land only
$4,200$600,000 × 0.7%
Annual replacement levy in this example$2,400 annual savingAbout 36% lower for this property at these rates.
The comparison replaces only the municipal property levy. School and regional levies, fees, grants and deferrals are excluded. It holds assessed land value constant and does not establish revenue neutrality for a municipality. A property with a higher share of value in land may pay more.
Why the structure matters01 02 03
Make improving a property more worthwhile.
Potentially lower annual bills
Removing buildings from the tax base can reduce the levy on properties with substantial improvements relative to their land value. The worked example shows how that saving can reach thousands of dollars.
No added LVT for added building value
For this same property, another $200,000 in assessed improvements would add $600 a year at the example’s current rate. Under a land-only levy, the added building value contributes $0, if land value and rates stay unchanged.
More homes can share the site
A land-only levy stays tied to the site’s value as housing is added. More homes can share that land cost, improving the incentive to use serviced land for housing.
Replacing municipal property taxes
A better tax base still needs budget discipline.
Municipalities set property tax rates each year to meet their budgets. When spending requirements rise, bills can rise too. Owners also face changes in how their property is assessed relative to others.
LVT changes what is taxed. It removes building improvements from that calculation and can shift more of the burden toward high-value land with little development.
Keeping bills manageable would also require transparent budgets, a carefully chosen rate and transition protections. A land-only system cannot, by itself, guarantee lower bills every year.
What the transition needs
- A replacement levy: remove the municipal property levy as the funded land-only system takes its place.
- Stable local services: demonstrate how each municipality’s revenue is maintained.
- Predictable implementation: cost a phase-in and protection for low-income and fixed-income owners.
- Open assessments: clear land valuations and an accessible appeal process.
The housing connection
Reward useful development.
Less incentive to leave land idle
A valuable site remains taxable when it is vacant. Leaving it undeveloped no longer avoids a tax on the building that could have been there.
Lower barriers to adding housing
Excluding buildings removes one recurring cost of construction. Permits, infrastructure, financing and labour still need to make the project viable.
Potentially lower entry prices
A higher recurring charge on land can reduce what buyers bid for the site. Affordability depends on both the purchase price and ongoing costs, as well as the homes that get built.
The case for LVT is a shift in incentives and the distribution of taxes. Savings vary by property; this proposal does not promise every owner a lower bill or a particular reduction in rents.
The evidence and the next step
Common Wealth Canada’s BC research explores using land value taxation to replace existing taxes. Its property-tax replacement model supports examining that possibility, but it does not validate this page’s 0.7% rate or establish savings for every owner.
Before adoption, BC Renewal would need a full tax-roll analysis showing the rate required to maintain municipal services, who pays more or less, the effect of exemptions and protections, and how land values may respond. Revenue replacing municipal taxes cannot also be counted as new funding for the Dividend.
Read the example’s assumptions
This is one illustrative apartment-building property, with land assessed at $600,000 and improvements at $1,600,000. The current municipal rate is assumed to be $3 per $1,000 (0.3%). The replacement land-only rate is assumed to be 0.7%.
Current levy: $2,200,000 × 0.003 = $6,600. Land-only levy: $600,000 × 0.007 = $4,200. Difference: $2,400, or 36.36% of the current levy. The additional-improvement illustration uses the same rates and property. No claim is made that these rates raise the same total revenue across a real municipality.
The example excludes other public-authority levies, utility fees, grants, deferrals and transaction taxes. It is an explanation of the proposal, not a personal tax estimate. Rates and land assessments can change under either system.
Sources
- Government of BC: municipal taxation — annual budgets, tax rates and assessment bases.
- Government of BC: published municipal rates and tax burden.
- Common Wealth Canada: BC’s Big Fix, Land Value Tax — an advocacy model with different policy designs.
- BC Renewal Party’s Land Value Tax proposal — the published 0.7% starting scenario.
Sources reviewed September 18, 2026. Example calculations by BC Renewal Party.