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

anniemf2508

Did an investigation into the council tax banding on our street and found that everyone is a band C even tho some (mine being one) are small 2 bed terraces, some small bungalows and the rest are 3 bed semi's with garages and front and back gardens....so i have appealed against our banding, just waiting for their response now

jch_2

Zebedeee
After receiving a letter from the VOA telling me I am unable to lodge an appeal because I was out off time. I wrote back asking them to tell me how using the Freedom of Information Act the banding for our property was arrived at and why there hasn't been a re-banding following the tribunal of other similar properties in the street. Today I received a letter from the VOA, they have booked a visit to my address to take pictures of the front and rear of the property. They do not need access to the address only the rear via side gate.!!!! They will then look at whether I am in the correct banding. Is this normal ? and what are the chances of a re-banding ?

NottsSaint

Not sure if anyone can help but today I received a letter from the my local valuation office stating they were rebanding my property upwards following a review.

I have never challenged my existing banding so I was just wondering whether they are entitled to do this. I know properties can be rebanded if extended following their next sale, but we have not extended it and have been here 8 years. I know there was a wholesale revaluation exercise but I thought this got stopped in September 2005.

Does the valuation office have a right to change council tax bandings at will? Are they still proceeding with a revaluation and rebanding exercise? Can/Do they periodically review bandings? I am just at a loss to know why this has come out of the blue without any forewarning.

Luckily any change will only be effective from the date of rebanding so at least they cannot backdate this increase for 8 years.

It says I have a right to challenge the decision, but as I am not a local to the area I have no idea what property prices were in 1991, so that will be my next avenue of research.

However I just wanted to identify if the Valuation Office had a right to undertaken this rebanding or whether I could challenge the basis for the rebanding exercise rather than the rebanding itself.

I have looked through some of the discussion in this thread but cannot see anything similar that answers my question, so apologies if the answer is in here somewhere already.

Any advice will be welcomed.

NottsSaint

anniemf2508

just had a letter from my local VOA saying they are going to review my band, will take 2 months maximum :j

beingjdc

anniemf2508 wrote: »

just had a letter from my local VOA saying they are going to review my band, will take 2 months maximum :j

Ah lucky you. I have just had a letter saying they will schedule a tribunal date for my banding within 5 months. A bit sick about this since I originally appealed last November, but they mislaid the forms!!

darich

Zebedeee wrote: »

I don't think you will be able to find online house prices before 2000, even the Land Registry don't have this information, so its a tricky business.

Zebedee - the Register of Scotland has prices going back to 1991 quite comfortably - i found several prices of properties in my area from the mid 80s. It does cost but only £3.88 per set of prices. You search for a 6month period and select a street - the ROS site then tells you the date that all the houses within that street were sold. You pay £3.88 for the price of all the houses in your search regardless of whether it's one house or 100 houses - you get the prices if they have them.

Not sure what you have in England but i'd have thought it would be something similar.

I got the prices of all my neighbours houses and my own using this method - cost me something like £25 all in and i got the prices of around 20 houses - most of which support my case for rebanding.

Zebedeee

darich, my experience is of England only, and you cannot get house prices online going back before 1991. It must make life a lot easier in Scotland if you have ready access to historic house prices.

If anybody has any great ideas about how to get historic house prices in England, PLEASE let us know! Most of us have had to trawl through newspaper microfiche records to get our 1991 house price.

Zebedeee

jch wrote: »

Zebedeee
After receiving a letter from the VOA telling me I am unable to lodge an appeal because I was out off time. I wrote back asking them to tell me how using the Freedom of Information Act the banding for our property was arrived at and why there hasn't been a re-banding following the tribunal of other similar properties in the street. Today I received a letter from the VOA, they have booked a visit to my address to take pictures of the front and rear of the property. They do not need access to the address only the rear via side gate.!!!! They will then look at whether I am in the correct banding. Is this normal ? and what are the chances of a re-banding ?

This sounds quite normal in my experience, jch. It's not a bad thing if they come and look at your property as their records of its size and situation may be incorrect, and the front view of a house does not always give an accurate idea of its size.

As for whether this will result in a rebanding I couldn't possibly say. Lets hope so, but at least they are starting to take you seriously. I hope you have success.;)

-chris-

Hi

I recently applied to VOA as I think my property should be in band C instead of band D as is the identical house opposite and some others down the road. They have told me that they do not agree and do not accept the nationwide house price calcualation and also say that even though some mistakes may have been made with other properties, they are not prepared to increase their banding to a D to make them consistent with mine as this would compound that error.

I sent them estate agents details for one of the band C properties up for sale (valued at £30,000 more than my own property) and the nationwide calcualator showing my house as a band C. They say that there is no appeal process. Is there anything else I can do????
Thanks

Chris

Zebedeee

-/chris-/ wrote: »

Hi

I recently applied to VOA as I think my property should be in band C instead of band D as is the identical house opposite and some others down the road. They have told me that they do not agree and do not accept the nationwide house price calcualation and also say that even though some mistakes may have been made with other properties, they are not prepared to increase their banding to a D to make them consistent with mine as this would compound that error.

I sent them estate agents details for one of the band C properties up for sale (valued at £30,000 more than my own property) and the nationwide calcualator showing my house as a band C. They say that there is no appeal process. Is there anything else I can do????
Thanks

Chris

Hang on, if I've got this right you're saying the VOA won't raise the neighbours band to D as this would 'compound the error'? So they are saying that yours being in band C is an error? If so, they are obliged to alter the bands to ensure uniformity. Anomolies are not allowed. Usually the VOA like to correct this by putting the neighbours' bands up, but seeing as they say that would be wrong (Fortunately, you've no idea how embarrassing it is when that happens!:o) they have to put yours down. Remind them that the 'tone of the list' is band C and that they are obliged to 'maintain the lists fair and accurate'.

If you can find a tribunal case in your area which is simillar to your case then they have to allow you a tribunal. I hope you get it sorted before this tho'.