Pickering and Whitby among highest property taxes in the GTA at $12,000 average

Pickering and Whitby have the highest average property taxes in Durham Region, and most of Ontario, at a whopping $12,000 a year on average.

This is according to a new report by real estate tracker Zoocasa released July 22. The report ranked 30 municipalities from across the GTA based on both their tax rate and the resulting overall expense based on the average home price.

These taxes go to a wide variety of services such as the local police service (often the biggest expense), fire departments, schools, road maintenance, garbage collection, and snow removal.

The Zoocasa report notes that the average property tax rate tends to be lower in municipalities with larger populations and higher housing costs. However, this is more of a trend than a hard rule. It does mean that despite hot markets, some places have surprisingly high or low overall average tax bills.

For example, Toronto ranks 13th for average housing costs at roughly $1,120,000 but ranks 29th for average tax bills at about $8,011.

The lowest average tax bill (at $6,435) is in Essa Township, a small rural community on the west side of Barrie with an average housing cost of around $818,000 and a rate of 0.786753.

The highest (at a whopping $17,910) is in King Township due largely to their very high average housing cost of $2,080,000 and a mid-tier tax rate of 0.861059.

Due to high property tax rates, Durham Region domionates the top ten highest average tax bills in the GTA. After King, Scugog has the second highest bill at $13,477 thanks to the average housing cost of $1,072,000 and a high rate of 1.257193 per cent.

Whitby ($13,184), Uxbridge ($12,617), Ajax ($12,617), Pickering ($12,300) follow closely behind ranked from third to sixth. Clarington ($11,246) and Oshawa ($11,167) rank lower at 12th and 14th. Finally Brock ($10,185) rounds out Durham Region in 21st place over all.

The ranking based on the average tax bill is as follows;

1. King – $17,910
2. Scugog – $13,477
3. Whitby – $13,184
4. Uxbridge – $12,617
5. Ajax – $12,491
6. Pickering – $12,300
7. Oakville – $12,223
8. Orangeville – $11,954
9. Markham – $11,820
10. Aurora – $11,542
11. Caledon – $11,472
12. Clarington – $11,246
13. Brampton – $11,223
14. Oshawa – $11,167
15. Stouffville – $11,162
16. East Gwillimbury – $10,732
17. Barrie – $10,610
18. Vaughan – $10,551
19. Innisfil – $10,308
20. Richmond Hill – $10,213
21. Brock – $10,185
22. Mississauga – $10,176
23. Newmarket – $10,173
24. Georgina – $10,111
25. Halton Hills – $9,911
26. Burlington – $9,632
27. New Tecumseth – $9,407
28. Milton – $8,344
29. Toronto – $8,011
30. Essa – $6,435

Durham Region’s high tax bills are largely driven by high property tax rates. The region’s eight municipalities fill the top ten when ranked by tax rate behind only Orangeville;

1. Orangeville – 1.445574
2. Oshawa – 1.431742
3. Barrie – 1.353416
4. Brock – 1.349051
5. Clarington – 1.291183
6. Whitby – 1.262858
7. Ajax – 1.261817
8. Scugog – 1.257193
9. Pickering – 1.223903
10. Uxbridge – 1.17705

These rates have jumped substantially compared to last year. Scugog led the pack with a 6.78 per cent tax hike in 2024, the third highest hike in the GTA behind only Mississauga (7.39 per cent) and Toronto (7.36 per cent).

Ajax also saw a large hike of 6.64 per cent (4th highest hike), followed by Clarington (9th), Pickering (10th), Brock (11th), and Whitby (12th). Oshawa (18th) and Uxbridge (26th) saw much smaller hikes. 

“Overall, these examples highlight the importance of considering property tax rates when purchasing a home, as they can significantly impact the overall cost of homeownership in the GTA,” Zoocasa wrote in their report, “Understanding these variations can help homeowners and potential buyers make more informed financial decisions.”

Zoocasa’s numbers are sourced from the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board annual report.