Calgary has healthy share of top income earners
Median income of top tax filers $293,800
CALGARY — The top one per cent of Canada’s 25.5 million tax filers accounted for 10.6 per cent of the nation’s total income in 2010, down from a peak of 12.1 per cent in 2006, according to Statistics Canada.
And the federal agency reported Monday that people in Calgary and in Alberta are well represented in that high income bracket.
Calgary had 27,300 tax filers in the top one per cent in 2010. However, between 1989 and 2010, its share of the national total more than doubled from five per cent to 11 per cent.
Statistics Canada said the median income of the top one per cent of tax filers who lived in Toronto was $301,200 in 2010, while in Calgary, it was $293,800. The top one per cent in Calgary held 26 per cent of the metropolitan area’s total income, while those in Toronto accounted for 18 per cent.
Ben Brunnen, chief economist of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, said having so many high-income earners in the city leads to stronger benefits for the overall economy.
“From a trickle down perspective, we see it in some of the bigger indicators. Whether it’s the retail spending of Alberta being among the highest in the country, the highest average weekly earnings that we as Albertans enjoy, that means more money to be spent on consumption. Restaurants. Big ticket items. Those types of things,” said Brunnen.
“When we see the significant numbers of high income earners here in Calgary it has a positive impact for all sectors of the Calgary economy.”
It also fuels job growth in areas where high income earners are spending their money, he said.
Todd Hirsch, senior economist with ATB Financial, said many very highly-educated people have been moving to Calgary in recent years.
“And corporate Calgary over the last couple of years has done very well,” he said. “So maybe it’s not surprising that some of these incomes are doing so well.
“From an economic point of few, it’s really beneficial. Two reasons. One is it provides a nice stable tax base for the government and especially right now when the government is going to be needing all of those tax revenues . . . And those higher incomes are supportive of other sectors of the economy, notably retail and the housing market.”
In 2010, four provinces – Ontario, Alberta, Quebec and British Columbia – accounted for 92 per cent of the 254,700 people in the top one per cent.
Ontario had 110,300, followed by Alberta with 52,200, Quebec at 42,600 and British Columbia with 29,500.
Between 1990 and 2010, Alberta’s share of the top one per cent of filers doubled from 10 per cent to 20 per cent, while Ontario’s proportion fell from 51 per cent to 43 per cent, said Statistics Canada.
The five largest census metropolitan areas – Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver – accounted for 62 per cent of the top one per cent of tax filers in 2010. In contrast, these five metropolitan areas had 42 per cent of all tax filers.
In 2010, a tax filer required an annual income of $201,400 to be in the top one per cent. This was 37 per cent higher than the threshold value of $147,500 in 1982, when the data series began.
And the federal agency reported Monday that people in Calgary and in Alberta are well represented in that high income bracket.
Calgary had 27,300 tax filers in the top one per cent in 2010. However, between 1989 and 2010, its share of the national total more than doubled from five per cent to 11 per cent.
Statistics Canada said the median income of the top one per cent of tax filers who lived in Toronto was $301,200 in 2010, while in Calgary, it was $293,800. The top one per cent in Calgary held 26 per cent of the metropolitan area’s total income, while those in Toronto accounted for 18 per cent.
Ben Brunnen, chief economist of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, said having so many high-income earners in the city leads to stronger benefits for the overall economy.
“From a trickle down perspective, we see it in some of the bigger indicators. Whether it’s the retail spending of Alberta being among the highest in the country, the highest average weekly earnings that we as Albertans enjoy, that means more money to be spent on consumption. Restaurants. Big ticket items. Those types of things,” said Brunnen.
“When we see the significant numbers of high income earners here in Calgary it has a positive impact for all sectors of the Calgary economy.”
It also fuels job growth in areas where high income earners are spending their money, he said.
Todd Hirsch, senior economist with ATB Financial, said many very highly-educated people have been moving to Calgary in recent years.
“And corporate Calgary over the last couple of years has done very well,” he said. “So maybe it’s not surprising that some of these incomes are doing so well.
“From an economic point of few, it’s really beneficial. Two reasons. One is it provides a nice stable tax base for the government and especially right now when the government is going to be needing all of those tax revenues . . . And those higher incomes are supportive of other sectors of the economy, notably retail and the housing market.”
In 2010, four provinces – Ontario, Alberta, Quebec and British Columbia – accounted for 92 per cent of the 254,700 people in the top one per cent.
Ontario had 110,300, followed by Alberta with 52,200, Quebec at 42,600 and British Columbia with 29,500.
Between 1990 and 2010, Alberta’s share of the top one per cent of filers doubled from 10 per cent to 20 per cent, while Ontario’s proportion fell from 51 per cent to 43 per cent, said Statistics Canada.
The five largest census metropolitan areas – Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver – accounted for 62 per cent of the top one per cent of tax filers in 2010. In contrast, these five metropolitan areas had 42 per cent of all tax filers.
In 2010, a tax filer required an annual income of $201,400 to be in the top one per cent. This was 37 per cent higher than the threshold value of $147,500 in 1982, when the data series began.
The federal agency also said the income gap between the top one per cent and the rest of filers has widened over time. In 1982, the median income of the top one per cent of filers was $191,600. This was seven times higher than the median income of $28,000 for the other 99 per cent of filers.
By 2010, the median income of the top one per cent of filers increased to $283,400, about 10 times higher than the median income of $28,400 for the rest.
mtoneguzzi@calgaryherald.com
Twitter: MTone123
By 2010, the median income of the top one per cent of filers increased to $283,400, about 10 times higher than the median income of $28,400 for the rest.
mtoneguzzi@calgaryherald.com
Twitter: MTone123
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