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April 24, 2021

Taxing times for Canadian families

169849_3851Believe it or not, families are spending more on taxes than they are on the basic necessities of life.

According to a new report by the Fraser Institute, 42.7 per cent of an average Canadian family's income went towards taxes while just 36.9 per cent was spent on food, clothing and shelter in 2012.

And we wonder where our money goes.

Charles Lammam, Fraser Institute associate director and co-author of the Canadian Consumer Tax Index, says, "Taxes are far and away the largest and fastest-increasing expense in the average household budget.

"In fact, the tax bill for the average family has grown a whopping 1,787 per cent since 1961."

It's no wonder Canadians have the feeling they are being taxed to death when more money is going to the government than into their own pockets.

The report states that the growth in taxes has outpaced increases in the cost of shelter (1,290 per cent); clothing (607 per cent); and food (578 per cent); as well as the Consumer Price Index (675 per cent).

And even though the average family income has grown over the past 50 years, the average tax bill has grown even more.

For instance, the report states that in 2012 the average household income was $74,113, with $31,615 of our hard-earned money going to taxes. That represents 42.7 per cent of the total income.

In 1961, the average family income was $5,000 while taxes were $1,675, or 33.5 per cent of the total income.

It definitely is taxing times for today's families.

By Donna Donaldson, MSN Money

Do you feel Canadians are being taxed to the max? 

 

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Gordon PowersGordon Powers

A long-time fund company executive, Gordon Powers now heads up the Affinity Group, a financial services consulting firm. Gordon was a personal finance columnist for the Globe & Mail for many years, has taught retirement planning...