Surrey taxpayers looking at a 2.6% property tax hike<\/p>\n
Published 11:00 am Wednesday, February 25, 2026<\/p>\n
Surrey is proposing to impose a property tax hike of 2.6 per cent this year to be voted on at council\u2019s March 9 meeting after a related corporate report is presented to the finance committee\u2019s public hearing.<\/p>\n
The public hearing will begin at 2:30 p.m. at City Hall, at 13450 104 Avenue.<\/p>\n
A corporate report by city manager Rob Costanzo and Surrey\u2019s finance manager Kam Grewal indicates the 2.6 per cent tax increase, if approved, would work out to about $75 for an average single-family home to cover \u201cgeneral inflationary pressures,\u201d city operations, and \u201cnew resources\u201d for police, the city\u2019s public safety department, the fire department and bylaw enforcement.<\/p>\n
\u201cDue to additional financial c0ntribution from TransLink to support regional transportation investments, no increase to the Roads & Traffic Safety Levy is required for 2026,\u201d the report <\/a>reads<\/a>. Also, user fees will \u201cgenerally\u201d increase by up to three per cent \u201cto predominately offset the cost increases associated with providing City services.\u201d<\/p>\n Mayor Brenda Locke is quoted in a City of Surrey press release as stating that the \u201cmodest\u201d proposed tax increase \u201cwill keep our property taxes among the lowest in all of the Metro region, while still making significant investments in public safety, roads, parks and facilities \u2013 and to build new major projects to serve our growing population and economy.<\/p>\n \u201cFor 2026, $284.5 million is proposed for policing, including $44.4 million in new funding,\u201d Locke continued. \u201cThis proposed budget supports the Surrey Police Service\u2019s request to hire 189 additional officers<\/a>, and it represents $84.2 million more than SPS actually spent in 2025. Council will have an opportunity to support a strong, responsible investment in public safety.\u201d<\/p>\n The proposed $779 general capital budget over five years includes among \u201ckey\u201d investments a 10,000-seat arena downtown, completing the Centre Block development to house SFU\u2019s school of medicine and also covers $358 million in road and other transportation improvements.<\/p>\n