Tony Chan grew up in Vancouver, got married and later raised his two sons in a Richmond, B.C., townhome he bought in 2000.

He says he has paid taxes in B.C. all of his adult life. Now 64 years old, the retiree was shocked to get hit with a $15,000-a-year bill in the province’s speculation and vacancy tax.

“When I first got the letter I thought, well, obviously there has been a mistake so I’ll just write them a letter and let them know that there’s been an error in their calculation of my circumstances, and I thought that would be the end of it,” he said.

“Certainly, that hasn’t been the case, and here we are almost two years later and I’m still battling the government on this thing.”

The tax was set up to discourage housing speculation and vacant homes in urban areas. Chan said he is anything but a real estate speculator.

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