Toronto Election 2026: Olivia Chow announces senior plan as Brad Bradford promises land transfer tax cut

Toronto’s mayoral candidates are turning their attention to two very different groups of voters, with Olivia Chow pitching new support for seniors and Brad Bradford targeting homebuyers with a proposed tax cut.

Chow announced a $5.61-million plan Tuesday that she says would help 28,000 seniors age at home through expanded homemaking services, mobile health clinics and more opportunities for recreation and social connection.

“People want to be able to stay in their homes, in communities they love, as they age,” Chow said in a statement.

The plan would expand the city’s homemaking services to 5,000 seniors, providing help with cleaning, laundry, meal preparation and other household tasks.

Chow is also proposing to purchase a fourth mobile dental clinic, which her campaign says would serve about 3,200 people a year, along with two additional primary care vans expected to reach about 4,800 seniors annually.

Another part of the plan would see the city partner with University Health Network to hire 50 “Community Connectors” to help seniors access recreation and social programs in naturally occurring retirement communities (NORC).

Chow’s campaign says more than 80,000 older Torontonians live in 531 NORC buildings across the city.

The proposal comes as Toronto’s population continues to age. Chow’s campaign says one in five Toronto residents will be over 65 by 2041.

Her campaign also points to measures introduced during her time in office, including expanded property tax deferral and cancellation programs, free seniors’ library programming, an expanded air conditioner program and increased homemaking services.

Bradford promising tax break

Meanwhile, Bradford is pitching a tax break aimed at homebuyers.

The mayoral candidate announced Tuesday that he would eliminate Toronto’s municipal land transfer tax on the first $1.1 million of an eligible principal residence. His campaign says the move could eliminate the tax entirely for as many as two-thirds of Toronto resale homes.

The proposal would apply to first-time buyers and Toronto homeowners who sell one principal residence and buy another in the city. Bradford’s campaign estimates a home purchased at the $1.1-million threshold would see about $18,000 in savings.

The plan would leave the city’s higher land transfer tax rates on homes above $3 million in place. Council increased those rates this year, with homes between $3 million and $4 million now subject to a 4.4 per cent municipal land transfer tax, rising on a sliding scale to 8.6 per cent for homes above $20 million.

Bradford’s campaign estimates the tax cut would reduce municipal revenue by about $300 million annually. 

However, mayoral candidate Chris Alexander questioned how Bradford would make up the estimated $300 million in annual revenue the city would lose under his land transfer tax proposal.

“Three hundred million dollars a year, every year, from a city that is already more than a billion dollars short,” Alexander said in a statement to Now Toronto. “There are only three ways to cover it: raise taxes, cut a service, or borrow. Which one is he choosing? He has to say.”

Alexander said the city’s land transfer tax revenue has already fallen from its 2021-22 peak and argued Bradford should address Toronto’s budget pressures before cutting revenue.

But Bradford’s campaign says the lost revenue would be offset through changes to the city’s budget, including changes to how infrastructure is financed and dividends from his proposed publicly owned Toronto Water utility.

Both announcements come less than four weeks before Toronto’s Oct. 26 municipal election.