Council Tax Cost Cutting: reduce your band and grab any discounts Discussion Area

dmcm9

Hi guppy , thanks for replying.

Yeah they have given me an explanation but one I'm not accepting.

They sent me an 11 page letter detailing calculations of growth in my town and applying this to the initial sale of my house in 1999. This method arrives at a valuation in Band E. (This was the letter that the tables were attached to detailing the 40 Band D houses and the relevant 1991 sales. I have a feeling that the tables were attached by mistake.)

I said i wasn't accepting indexation as a suitable method of valuation when there was an abundance of 1991 market evidence available. They're response was that they have to reflect the 'physical circumstances' of the property at the date it was built that is why they need to make reference to the 1999 sale in their valuation. In my most recent letter I pointed out that 'physical circumstances' is defined as the size, layout and locality of the house and does not include any need to reflect market conditions , the only date of impotance for valuation being 1991, so the sale in 1999 is completely irrelevant. I'm still waiting on a response to this!

I also pointed out that there was a builders premium included in this first sale of my house and that if they were to insist on using indexation that an allowance should be made in their calculation to reflect this. They're response was to say that they weren't aware of builders premiums and could i provide evidence of such a thing. I provided evidence in my most recent letter but, as i said, i'm still waiting on a response to this.

I started corresponding with the Assessor in March, i have recieved 3 phone calls and 11 letters to date and have work my way up the ranks of seniority. The position i'm in now is that there is no one left in the Assessor i can correspond with. I tried going to my Councillor but to no avail. I'm really looking for ideas of where I can go outwith the Assessors office.

I firmly believe that had my appeal been in time and I was able to have a hearing the band would be reduced as there is no market evidence available to support band E.

I am feeling very frustrated - I have all the evidence I could want to support band D and without the goodwill of my local Assessors office I can do absolutely nothing with it! :sad:

P.S. Sorry for the long explanation, hope I didn't bore too much.

guppy

Very interesting, dmcm.

Regarding the premium paid for a new build, there is a link somewhere further back to an article on the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors website that refers to stripping out the value of builder's incentives, e.g. value of any carpets, white goods, stamp duty/legal fees paid etc.

On the other hand, a new build is worth more than an older property to begin with. How old are those Band D comparables they sent you? Can you find any houses that were sold new around 1991 in your area? That would probably be the best evidence.

As far as I know, no outside body (bar a valuation tribunal) will be able to help over a difference of opinion on value, providing the Assessor is acting properly. You could always try making an appeal on the grounds of some kind of change in the area since 1999. E.g. new road layout, new school, etc. etc. You don't have to prove it would have affected the value to the Assessor, but they would have to demonstrate your band is correct if you pursued it to a tribunal.

Good luck

losgiganteskid

Does anyone know whether not having central heating counts as a benefit when claiming incorrect band rating - plus all the other reasons as well !

dmcm9

Thanks again guppy.

I didn't think i could go anywhere else but i wasn't a 100% sure so i thought i'd check.

On the list of properties the Assessor gave me there are propeties built in 1991 with the highest selling price being £53,000 - well within the Band D threshold. I've asked the Assessor why he thinks my house would sell for £5000 more than this to make it Band E but again i'm waiting on a response.

Without the goodwill of the Assessor i'm on a hiding to nothing.

Very frustrating!

guppy

losgiganteskid wrote: »

Does anyone know whether not having central heating counts as a benefit when claiming incorrect band rating - plus all the other reasons as well !

Hello, technically yes, so its worth mentioning, but the value it might have added in 1991 is going be quite small in the scheme of things.

guppy

dmcm9 wrote: »

Thanks again guppy.

I didn't think i could go anywhere else but i wasn't a 100% sure so i thought i'd check.

On the list of properties the Assessor gave me there are propeties built in 1991 with the highest selling price being £53,000 - well within the Band D threshold. I've asked the Assessor why he thinks my house would sell for £5000 more than this to make it Band E but again i'm waiting on a response.

Without the goodwill of the Assessor i'm on a hiding to nothing.

Very frustrating!

Sounds like you're asking the right questions and keeping the pressure on them. Shouldn't really have to rely on their goodwill if its wrong though Another way to get a tribunal hearing that some people have used is to find another relevant tribunal decision made recently and appeal off the back of it. I assume the rules are the same in Scotland. Good luck anyway

Need-2-sort-my-money-out

Hello , having been looking at this site for some time now , ive decided its time for action !
PLS bear with me !
You look like a friendly bunch here , so heres my first plea for help !
Ok I have read the article about Council Tax rebanding after seeing Martin on TV some time ago now & am sure Im paying too much CT.

I have checked the VOA web site & my property is an E band , then I checked the house prices on my estate - this is where Im confused , because I live in an Housing Association property, so Im unable to check the price of any houses sold in my road , so I looked for houses around my estate which may have been sold . Now it looks like a couple were sold a while back , and according to that search Im IN the right band , BUT 2 houses in that road have had their CT rebanding changed from an E band to a D band , plus a friend of mine in another road on my estate are a D band also.
which is making me think im in the wrong band.

So my question IS ( sorry its taken so long 2 explain ! ) , does any one think I have the grounds to challange my banding ?
And do I ring the VOA first or do I write a letter ?

I do hope Ive expained this right - pls can anyone help me here

Thank you for reading

[EMAIL="abuse@moneysavingexpert.com?subject=Reporting post http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=6351205"][/EMAIL]

tdk

Having read your helpful info on council tax reclaims, I have gone back through all accommodation I have lived in and found a house which is band E and the same house at the back is band D, we were in the house for 15years upto 2001, are you able to use this process for reclaiming if no longer in the property?

Maisie

tdk wrote: »

Having read your helpful info on council tax reclaims, I have gone back through all accommodation I have lived in and found a house which is band E and the same house at the back is band D, we were in the house for 15years upto 2001, are you able to use this process for reclaiming if no longer in the property?

Hi tdk.
Welcome to this thread.
Yours is a frequent question if you look back at the previous posts and afraid the answer is No you cannot claim for houses you no longer live in.

However if you can persuade the present occupiers to make a claim against the banding and if it's successful you should get your share of any rebate due.

Good luck. Maisie

guppy

Need-2-sort-my-money-out wrote: »

So my question IS ( sorry its taken so long 2 explain ! ) , does any one think I have the grounds to challange my banding ?
And do I ring the VOA first or do I write a letter ?

Hello,

Sounds like the bandings around you and the house price calculator are sending mixed messages. Are the other houses identical to yours?

Neither of the above are concrete evidence of what your house might have been worth in 1991, but this doesn't really matter at this stage. Personally I'd write to the VOA and ask for the band to be reviewed and explained to you. Put down any facts you think suggest you are in the wrong band, i.e. inconsistencies with houses nearby. You have nothing to lose trying this.

I suggest writing in because the person you first speak to on the phone probably won't be dealing with your case. If you phone you're depending on the first person passing on your argument properly.

If the VOA say the band is right and you disagree then things get a lot harder. You will need to find hard evidence to make them change their mind. That can be a long and difficult struggle which you may or may not win. There is loads more info about that on this thread, and loads of good advice about building a case.

Good luck