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

reehsetin

I've just asked them and they've said that it was due to a structural alteration,
our house is a converted bunganlow so I assume it's because it went from being a bungalow to a converted bungalow, it either means no one else on the street converted or the council just didn't notice that they had,
I might ask for a re-evaluation because I don't think our banding will get any worse but a conservatory & porch were added 6 years ago not sure if that would mean we'd move up a band if we asked!?!

razfrew

ive just come to the end of a battle with conwy council. i did the street comparison and all the small houses like mine were band B but my band was C. the first response to my claim for refund/reduction was negative and not even signed. so i wrote back and insisted they look at my case more carefully. then the response claimed the square meterage was the reason for my higher band. out came the tape measure and guess what. the council lackey cant convert square feet into square meters very well. a lady came down to confirm my measurement was correct and hey presto. reduction and refund imminent! thanks to Mr Lewis and the team!

lincroft1710

razfrew - firstly it would have been Valuation Office Agency not council who dealt with your band query.

Secondly it is more likely that when the house was originally measured the mistake was made then rather than converting from sq ft to sq m, which VOA have a book of conversion tables for.

Kilmaley01

Hi, can someone give me a couple quick pointers. I've had a glance over the last few pages of this tread and cant see anything about anyone getting refunds in Wales? Has anyone got a success story for Wales. How do I first go about finding out what other similar houses in my area are paying? Sorry if I'm asking something thats already been noted numerous times - I'm at work and cant get away with reading through the whole 50 odd pages now.

Thanks

x

lincroft1710

reehsetin - as they were added by a previous owner, cons and porch can now be reflected in band. Although it is doubtful that band would increase because of these, the notional 1991 value is now more than it was in 96 so there is less chance of receiving reduction.

Bands cannot be increased on account of improvements made by current owner, so if the other converted bungalows haven't sold since conversions carried out, the bands cannot change.

lincroft1710

gromit - go to VOA website, Council Tax Wales, follow instructions to find bands of other houses in your street. Several Welsh posters have reported that they have successfully applied for and received lower CT band.

dannoi

Dear All,

I came across the reclaiming council tax article after a friend successfully challenged their banding and were downgraded. After following all the advice on the website (VOA, Nethouseprices, Nationwide House Price calculator), my partner and I contacted the local VOA. We had to do an online proposal as we had only recently moved into the property. We then got a letter asking us to phone with our reasons so evidence in hand from all the websites, my partner rang our VOA contact who laughed at my partner's evidence (based on this site) and informed us that bandings are decided upon square metre wall space and that the banding will not be reassessed and in fact, he may increase it. I did all my reasearch as suggested on the website and believed that we should be a B/C and the VOA contact claims we are a D if not E.

I am now basically looking on any advice on how to go from here. I know I can challenge it again and go to a tribunal but all seems a bit extreme as it does seem we came across a very patronising contact. My friend literally called the local council and was awarded it over the phone whereas we had to call a regional contact and fill out forms. Is this right?? Can anyone help? This is our first apartment together and are struggling to get to grips with it all!!

Thanks everyone!!

lincroft1710

dannoi - VOA (who are part of HMRC) deal with CT bands in Eng/Wales, the Assessors (who are part of council) deal with CT in Scotland. I'm ex VOA and dealt with CT appeals for last 12 yrs of my time there.

If you are applying for a lower CT band within 6 months of first becoming occupier, then filling in an appeal form is the correct way of doing this.

In Eng/Scotland CT band is based on value of property as at 1 Apr 1991, Wales is 1 Apr 2003. The size of the property is an important factor, but not the only one. VOA has details of virtually every property sale in country, so can look at what similar properties sold for in 91 (or 03). Using this data has shown house price indices to be inaccurate, usually 10 - 15%, worst case was 25%.

Have you looked at VOA website and found what bands neighbouring properties are in.

Finally, I would contact VOA and ask them why they believe your band could be too low.

nurse-money

Hello I moved in to my new property in May 2009 and have successfully challenged my council tax band from a B to an A!! Whoo good news, which is an annual saving of nearly £150!!

My question is, as I wont be getting a refund, as I have only lived in the property since May, it will just alter the amount I have to pay this year. Do I need to contact the neighbours who lived in the property before me? As this has been backdated until 1993?? Or will the council do this? I dont even know who lived here before me?

Also some of the other properties in the house (it a huge large Victorian House converted in to 7 flats) Do I need to tell them? 5 of the flats are in Band A, and are now in Band B.

lincroft1710

nurse-money - it is council's job to contact previous occupiers of your flat. Although not applicable in your case, telling the council of previous occ's new address (if known) can be very helpful.

5 of the flats are in Band A, and are now in Band B. I'm sorry but I don't understand what you mean by this.