Council Tax Question - A classic what went wrong tale!

OneAimMan

Hi thanks for reading my first post and sorry its such a lengthy one! :eek: but i think the questions here will apply to many others.

I purchased a brand new flat from the developer which went through, with the help of a lawyer of-course, without any problems on most part.

2 months down the line I decided to rent the property out to a tenant. Trying to be proactive I called the Council to let them know the property has been unfurnished/uninhabited since I bought it and now it was being rented. I was told as the property has never been lived in and its been unfurnished for that 2 months period I would not need to pay anything and the following bills would go to the tenant.

Some more time goes by and surprise surprise I get a letter saying the council operator had made a mistake and that the developer had actually had the property exempt already and had used up the 6months exemption so all I get is 10% discount for this 2 month period.

Now I feel as I've been left out of the game here a little and soon forced to hand over hard-earned cash.

Questions:

The developer did not tell me that they'd already used up the 6 months exemption and there sales girl did say I did not need to pay council tax for some time but this was not in writing and just something she briefly mentioned. Is the fault with them and I should try to chase them for the amount?

Secondly isn't a lawyer's property searches before exchange meant to reveal these kind of things? Now I have to admit that he is useless when it comes to answering a question directly and will slither his way out of anything but hey he's a lawyer what else should I expect! Should I be confronting him on not warning me about the exemption having been used up?

I just feel cheated its not something the seller would mention or the lawer, looking out for my interests supposedly, have asked before hand? I guess I'll know for future reference to ask but as anyone buying for 1st time knows, there is steep learning curve.

Also:
-Once 6 month exemption is used, how many weeks/months of council tax need to be paid before I can apply for full emption again? e.g. if tenant leaves after 6 months, and property is not occupied can I apply again?

-If I do have to pay the council and developer is not willing to reimburse, can I ask the council to apply a 25% Single Persons Discount instead of that measly 10% even though no one was living in the property?

If you made it this far, give yourself a pat on the back :money:

Thank you for your replies!

Sammy85_2

Your solicitor would not have done searches that included council tax. Its up to you to find out how much it is and whether you need to pay/what has been paid.

I believe you can only get 6 months exemption in each council tax year, so you would have to wait til the next year begins if it has all been used up already. It would have been nice for the builder to tell you they had used it, but unless you have conclusive proof that they have misinformed you then i doubt there is anything you can do about it with regards to getting the money out of them.

I would go back to the council and ask for the 25% single occupancy discount. It would seem that you have been discounted for it being a second home instead.

Its only 2 months you are paying for, thats only a few hundred quid and whilst its not a nice suprise, its not the end of the world and certainly isnt worth getting into trouble with the council for non payment whilst you argue it out.

The only advice i can offer is:

PAY the council what they say you owe (with single person discount). It is the most important bill and you will get into alot of trouble very quickly if you dont pay it. If it turns out to be a big mistake, they will reimburse you.

clutton_2

""Once 6 month exemption is used, how many weeks/months of council tax need to be paid before I can apply for full emption again?""

YOU ONLy get 6 months exemption per financial year...

you could check when the property was first registered.....

it is a steep learning curve - take it on the chin...

just pay up and move on

you could try getting the money out of the developer but i wou ld not hold any breath while waiting...

you can claim it as a legitimate business expense to off-set against tax

OneAimMan

"you can claim it as a legitimate business expense to off-set against tax"
tax? what tax? just kidding. :rotfl:

On another reply someone mentioned that a property needs to only have had paid 6 weeks worth of council tax before exemption can be applied for again but am guessing this is incorrect now! Thanks for clearing that up.

I'll have to ask the council tomrrow if they'll apply the 25% SPD but can they turn around and say, "we know you were not living in the property and hence can't apply the 25% discount"?

I agree I should of asked the question first and do plan to pay. Its not the councils fault I realise now. My mistake was assuming that a brand new property does not incur council tax until its first registered and hence why I did not question the developer. If only I had Martin asking these questions for me at the time! :money:

CIS

-Once 6 month exemption is used, how many weeks/months of council tax need to be paid before I can apply for full emption again? e.g. if tenant leaves after 6 months, and property is not occupied can I apply again?

I work in council tax. A 6 week period of occupany will reset the Class C exemption - anything less and you can only claim any remaining balance of the 6 month that has not yet been claimed.

-If I do have to pay the council and developer is not willing to reimburse, can I ask the council to apply a 25% Single Persons Discount instead of that measly 10% even though no one was living in the property?

The property wasn't someones 'sole or main residence' during this period therefore a 25% discount cannot be awarded.