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

gnasher

Stu666 wrote:

I'm not really sure where I stand re property banding. I rent a funny little place that isn't quite a house nor a flat, it is like a bridge between two houses which cars can drive underneath to access the parking spaces. It was built in 1996 and is very small, with only one bedroom and no back garden. The houses either side of us are both two bedrooms with back gardens, but we are all band B. The properties at the ends of the terrace are larger and are band C. I would've thought my council tax should be cheaper? I did dispute the banding as described on this site, but the reply I received made it sound like I didn't have a leg to stand on. Also, with the property being rented, I'm unsure whether I'm even entitled to dispute the banding?

You are fine to dispute the banding as you are an interested person - you pay the council tax bill.
You don;t say how long you have been living there, but going off gettign a negative reply its more than 6 months, but as Lionna shows above, there are ways and means!

steview

bnoc wrote:

They consider your house as it stands at this moment, then decide what it would have been worth in that condition and in that location on 1st April 1991.

By "in that location" do you mean with the surrounding area being in the surroundings it is currently in (i.e. with restaurants etc.) or just in that exact location the way it was in 1991?

What I mean is, would they consider the development and bars and restaurants etc. as having been there in 1991 for the valuation even though they weren't?

I appreciate your help on this point since I was hoping this to be the main part of my argument since the area was not trendy back in 1991 and it's only due to this development and one back around 2000 that it has become very modern and a popular place to live so a backdating of the value should really take that into account.

bnoc

steview wrote:

By "in that location" do you mean with the surrounding area being in the surroundings it is currently in (i.e. with restaurants etc.) or just in that exact location the way it was in 1991?

As it currently is

steview wrote:

What I mean is, would they consider the development and bars and restaurants etc. as having been there in 1991 for the valuation even though they weren't?

Yes

steview wrote:

I appreciate your help on this point since I was hoping this to be the main part of my argument since the area was not trendy back in 1991 and it's only due to this development and one back around 2000 that it has become very modern and a popular place to live so a backdating of the value should really take that into account.

Sorry for breaking the legs off your argument

steview

bnoc wrote:

Sorry for breaking the legs off your argument

That's okay, I'd prefer to know now rather then later and that is, after all, why I posted the questions on the forum. Thanks for your help bnoc!

It's a wierd one though because it means that if I found a similar property to mine close by that was sold in 1991 and looked up how much it sold for (which was another piece of advice from Martin) that figure would probably be much less than the estimated value which assumed all the modernisation and improvements since then were around at that time so does that mean I can base my argument for a reduction in band on that price instead of the estimated?

soozig

I called the SCOTTISH Assessors today as although most flats in my street are a band A I am a band C , however my flat also has the attic floor which was converted for use. What i do not believe however, is that my flat cost in excess of £35,00 in 1991 as i purchased it at it's valued price in 2002 for £43,000. According to the Nationwide site it's approx. value in 1991 was £24,00. The Assessor has taken my number he says he will look into it and call me back tomorrow.

Gnasher04_2

Hi all,

May seem like a weird question, but can the previous owner of the property apply for a refund ? We have just been rebanded from B to A thanks to this site, and the letter states that it is backdated to 1993.

We only bought the house in 2002, it was previously owned by my Wife's Aunt which is why I ask....

Altarf

Quote:Originally Posted by steview
By "in that location" do you mean with the surrounding area being in the surroundings it is currently in (i.e. with restaurants etc.) or just in that exact location the way it was in 1991?

Quote:Originally Posted by bnoc
As it currently is

Quote:Originally Posted by steview
What I mean is, would they consider the development and bars and restaurants etc. as having been there in 1991 for the valuation even though they weren't?

Quote:Originally Posted by bnoc
Yes

Quote:Originally Posted by steview
I appreciate your help on this point since I was hoping this to be the main part of my argument since the area was not trendy back in 1991 and it's only due to this development and one back around 2000 that it has become very modern and a popular place to live so a backdating of the value should really take that into account.

Quote:Originally Posted by bnoc
Sorry for breaking the legs off your argument

I don't think that it is as straightforward as that. If you look at the VOA website you will see that one of the assumptions they make is "that the size, layout, and character of the dwelling as well as its locality must be considered as they actually existed at 1 April 1993 or, depending on the circumstances, a later date"

http://www.voa.gov.uk/council_tax/assumptions.htm

The logic to this, is if you had two identical properties next to each other, one built in 1900 and one built in 2006, if the area was a slum until 2000 when they redeveloped the area into hipville central, then the 1900 property could be band A, but the identical 2006 property could be band H. This would obviously be unfair.

What the VOA will do is downband all the properties if there is a development that lowers the value (a sewage works built next door) from the date of the adverse development (not all the way back to 1993). They don't upband properties if there is a development that increases the value of the properties.

However I think that you would be stretching the point if you tried to argue that your house was a lone house with nothing surrounding it in 1991 (although it might be amusing to try). What I think that you can argue is that it's 'trendiness' (and hence value) needs to be based on the 'trendiness' of the area as it was in 1991, not as it is now.

Given that this would be a very subjective argument, the best way to prove it would be to establish the selling prices of properties of the same size and type in 1991 as close to the area where you are as possible, rather than try to use a calculated figure (which is always going to be a bit hit and miss).

System

Plz could some1 tell me if my parents could get a reduction in the council tax as my mother is disabled and gets DLA
They've had a stair lift put in their council house and pulling bars on the wall to get in and out of the bath,would this qualify them for a reduction in CT.

Mim_2

I've emailed Martin too. I've been rebanded from an E to a D and received a refund of £2007.06, plus no council tax payments from October to January (worth another £682).

I live in a new house (built in 1995) and have been incorrectly banded all that time. Here in Liverpool we pay one of the highest levels of council tax. From next year my bill will reduce from the present £1680 to £1300.

By the way, my sister receives DLA and our council have told her that if her house has any modifications to help her with her disability she is eligible to apply for a reduction in council tax.

bozo_2

Have been rebanded from G to F. As a result the council have sent us a nice cheque for in excess of £2000. They rebated our overpayment for the last 10 years. We have been in the property 15 years.
Would be more than willing to appear on your programme

Regards

Bob Kenny: