As the old idiom goes — “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”

A recent report by online real estate broker zoocasa.com ranked the average property tax rates for municipalities in the GTA from No. 1 (lowest) to No. 33 (highest). Mississauga came in near the top of the pack at No. 13, while Caledon placed 16th and Brampton placed 23rd.

The rankings, released July 12, were calculated using the average amount of tax paid in each community, the municipal tax rate and average home price in each region.

Brampton had an average tax rate of 1.03 per cent based on Zoocasa's formula. Their calculations assumed an average home price of $695,904 in June based on TREB statistics, which translated to an average tax bill of $7,207.

Mississauga ranked a full 10 spots better than its Peel neighbour, with a rate of 0.82 per cent. The average home price in June was $726,211, leading to an average tax bill of $5,980 in Canada’s sixth largest city.

Peel’s other major municipality, Caledon, ranked 16th, with a tax rate of 0.84 per cent. As a result, the average Caledon taxpayer saw a bill of $7,348, based on a market home value of $874,690.

Orangeville had the highest property taxes on the list at 1.4 per cent and average bill of $7,906. Homes in Orangeville sold for an average of $560,735 in June.

Three City of Toronto districts clinched the top spot, each with a property tax rate of 0.63 per cent — the lowest rate in the GTA.

“Because property tax rates differ from region to region, some homeowners will pay significantly more each year than in neighbouring cities. For example, residents dwelling within the City of Toronto, where council opts to keep the rate at or below inflation, actually pay at the lowest tax rate in the province at 0.63 per cent,” said zoocasa.com in its analysis.

The report does not include rural areas and those outside of cities, towns or villages, which are subject to the Provincial Land Tax.