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Council Tax on my deceased Grans House

Hi, Can anyone help? My gran died several months ago, we are in the process of trying to sell her house but in the market that we have at the moment is taking time. The council have been in touch to say that we must pay the full amount now, does this sound right? It seems alot to pay for an empty house. Can anyone shed any light on this for me.

Comments

  • bryanb
    bryanb Posts: 5,034 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Check the council's policy regarding empty houses. If it is payable opt for monthly payments.
    Who owns the house now?
    This is an open forum, anyone can post and I just did !
  • CIS
    CIS Posts: 12,260 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    If the property was left empty due to the death of the owner/tenant then the property is exempt under a Class F exemption until probate is sorted, once probate is granted then a maximum of 6 month Class F exemption can be awarded from the date of the grant of probate.

    If after that 6 months the property has not been occupied then , if it was previously furnished and the furniture is now removed then a further maximum of 6 months of Class C exemption can be awarded.
    I no longer work in Council Tax Recovery but instead work as a specialist Council Tax paralegal assisting landlords and Council Tax payers with council tax disputes and valuation tribunals. My views are my own reading of the law and you should always check with the local authority in question.
  • jessie15
    jessie15 Posts: 275 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    Many thanks for your replies I will look into the points raised.
  • Georgie4
    Georgie4 Posts: 217 Forumite
    I'm in almost the same situation with a deceased relatives house and in South Wales I was granted 6 months free of council tax but I now have to pay half the applicable amount until the house is sold - which could be a long time - not very happy in this present climate and do think its a tad unreasonable:cool:
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