During the April 13 council meeting, Mayor Pascal De Bellefeuille rejected the 5% tax cap for 2026. The following day, a press release from the Ville claimed that this cap would cost $3 million to justify this refusal.
This $3 million represents an over-collection imposed on nearly half of the residential properties in our community. In its own communication on April 14, the Ville finally confirmed the data: “46% [of residential properties] are experiencing a higher increase in property value (beyond a 50% increase).” Yet, the Ville lowered its residential tax rate by only 25.8%—a reduction that fails to offset the massive value hikes for thousands of homeowners.
The figures prove the injustice: The Ville applied a rate decrease of 26.1% for non-residential properties and an almost identical decrease for residential. However, because property values grew at such different rates, the results are polar opposites:
For businesses: The combination of stable property values and the rate decrease has resulted in a massive reduction for these companies. For example, RONA and the SAQ (both on Rue de Saint-Jovite) each saw their tax bills drop by 25% compared to 2025 — savings of $20,522 and $6,634 respectively.
For residents: A rate decrease of 25.8% was far too low to offset massive assessment hikes. For example, a house located on Rue Labelle saw its actual tax bill jump by 96%, an increase of more than $2,100. This fiscal shock is explained by an explosion in the property’s assessment, rising from approximately $300,000 in 2025 to $900,000 in 2026. If the Ville had capped the tax increase at 5%, this owner would have only paid a $100 increase compared to last year, instead of the $2,100 increase actually demanded. A 25.8% rate “discount” means absolutely nothing when your residential property value triples in one year.
The means to act: On January 29, Ville Treasurer Benoît Grou confirmed to Les Amis that the Ville had a surplus of at least $5M for 2025. Why not use a portion of this surplus to protect the thousands of families in our community who are being hit hard by this tax shock?
Budgetary expansion: The Ville is using the 2026 property tax increases to finance a $5M increase in spending compared to 2025—a growth of 8.2%, significantly higher than the inflation rate of 2.8%.
A voice of dissent: Councilor Jean-Luc Trahan was the only one to denounce this 50% budgetary escalation over five years (Ville and MRC), warning that this pace risks driving away young families and seniors. We commend his clear-sightedness.
2026 property taxes: The Mayor declared the file closed, stating that the Ville “will not answer any further questions on this subject.“
Next steps: In the spirit of collaboration mentioned by the Mayor, Les Amis will soon send an official letter to the Ville to share our suggestions for the 2027 budget. We look forward to sharing this correspondence and the resulting dialogue with you in our next newsletter.
About Les Amis de Mont-Tremblant
Our mandate is to ensure the harmonious real estate development of the region while maintaining transparency and community acceptability.