Property tax in Canmore

Alberta levies no land transfer tax, provincial or municipal. At closing there are two Land Titles registration fees: $50 plus $5 for each $5,000 or portion thereof of the land value, and the same on the mortgage principal.

On a $900,000 building financed at 80%, that comes to $1,720 in all. Bought with cash, the same building costs only $950: the second half of the line follows the mortgage, not the price. For comparison, the same building in Vancouver would pay a five-figure transfer tax. So what sets Canmore apart from its neighbours is not closing costs: it is its property tax rate.

Canmore does the opposite of every other city. Its higher rate hits the non-primary residence, and a building escapes it outright at 3 units: the bylaw places any building of three or more units on a single title in the primary sub-class, even when rented year-round.

A duplex does not qualify by its structure. With no declared primary residence and no Alberta-resident owner, it is taxed at 0.83% instead of 0.46%: $7,501 a year instead of $4,109 on a $900,000 building.

Canmore's rate is 0.46%. On a $900,000 plex that is $4,109 a year.

Yes, the other way round. A building of 3 units or more is at the primary residence rate, 0.46%. A duplex with no declared primary residence and no Alberta-resident owner is taxed at 0.83%.