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

LittleEmms

oooo sorry - more questions - is it worth me sending a copy of my mortgage valuation with my review form. This will show my property is a one-bed and also evidence of price I paid at the date I mentioned?

Thanks!!!

vivatifosi

Hi LittleEms,

Anything that you can copy that could support your case could be beneficial.

Just read back to your initial post which said that review was by council not by VOA, is that correct? If so, my understanding is that the council cannot change bands, only enact the banding that the VOA sets.

caroline1964_2

Hi
Not sure if this is in the right place or not, but can any one tell me if we have been in the property for more than 6 months, can we put a claim in for wrong banding.
Many Thanks

vivatifosi

Hi caroline,

You can still write to the VOA and ask them to look at your property, but as you have been there more than six months won't have a right to tribunal. If you are going to write to the VOA, make sure that you are clear as to why you think the banding is wrong, and don't just use evidence from the house price calculators that Martin mentions.

If you let us know what your case is, then we can probably tell you the best way of presenting it.

caroline1964_2

Thanks, l looked on the website of banding, and we are in a band d several of the other propertys are in band c includig a neighbour property which is bigger than our property.

Thanks

LittleEmms

vivatifosi wrote: »

Hi LittleEms,

Anything that you can copy that could support your case could be beneficial.

Just read back to your initial post which said that review was by council not by VOA, is that correct? If so, my understanding is that the council cannot change bands, only enact the banding that the VOA sets.

Hi Vivatifosi

You were right - my review is by VOA, not the council... i got overexcited by the fact they would just look into it!! I just wrote the council!!

Will definitely do that and print off the fact that numbers 9 upwards (which are two beds) are C banding as well!

Thanks again for all your help!!

lincroft1710

caroline1964 - although not a certainty, there is a probability your band is too high. There is a possibility VOA are not aware some of your neighbours have had extensions, or they haven't been sold since extensions carried out, hence they're still in Band C.

little emms - VOA should have details of your purchase price and your property. However sending in the copy mortgage valuation is a good idea. Were any of the 2 beds sold roundabout the time you bought your home and if so how do the prices compare.

LittleEmms

Hi Guys

Thanks Lincroft!! :beer:

Now my ickle problem is when using the Land registry site – houseprices.co.uk – or the nethouseprices website, the majority of properties down my road sold are actually shared ownership and it is that value that shows on the website. For example I know a neighbour (friend) who bought their two bed a year later than me and theirs is only showing the value of the 50% share they purchased not the full 100% price. :rolleyes:

Randomly my house is not showing on either site (the above or the land registry one), I’m glad I have my land registry documents at home to prove its mine!

There is evidence of one sale of a 3 bed near me – the freehold of the entire property (no share). So I’m going to use that. Question; In the meantime has anyone got anymore recommendations on evidence of prices? Will it need to be the library.... Or do you think I have enough evidence to send it with the above?

Emms :cool:

lincroft1710

Emms - how does 50% of your purchase price compare with prices shown (50% share) for 2 beds. What band is the 3 bed and how much more was it than yours? If you could give us the prices we could give you our opinions. You may need to visit library, it will depend on how these prices compare and the years they were sold.

vivatifosi

Hi LittleEms,

I want to say I'm thinking out loud here - hard when you can't hear me talking but I don't know how to say the typed equivalent, and I'd also like Lincroft's opinion.

Anyhow, here's my thought. Shared ownership to me feels like a relatively new phenomenon. I can't remember any shared ownership places in 1991 where I live and now they are everywhere. If the shared ownership places have been built since 1995 and littleems can get evidence of the first sale, can littleems use that as their major piece of evidence and double up the price? I seem to remember the VOA telling me that they didn't do all of the initial valuations because they couldn't, but they did tend to do the valuations on any new stock built after. Just wondering if that could avoid a trip to the library, or whether it is too high risk a strategy...