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

shoust

Hi, I'm just wondering , I'm moving into this bedsit area soon (place with living room as bedroom), however I've found out that my council tax band in my bedsit will be the same as the place I'm moving from (3 bedroom flat, living with parents currently), which is a band C, but I've been told I should wait a while before challenging my band, say a month when I'd pay the first council tax, possible to do anything now?

lincroft1710

Shoust - you can't challenge band until the date your tenancy begins or you actually move in whichever is earlier.

lincroft1710

Cepheus - houses are banded by comparing them with houses of a similar type of size which actually sold in 1991. The valuations are not "broken down" into constituent parts. The garden size won't make that much difference to valuation.

cepheus

lincroft1710 wrote: »

Cepheus - houses are banded by comparing them with houses of a similar type of size which actually sold in 1991. The valuations are not "broken down" into constituent parts. The garden size won't make that much difference to valuation.

That's really the problem, it is an unusual house. I may extend the search for similar properties that have sold since 1991 then backdate it, rather than just looking at those sold during the last few years.

I am surprised that the land area doesn't make much difference since it is potential real estate. If I wanted to buy of plot of land in the middle of London without any building on it at all it would still cost a fortune.

Even if that is the case the house area of 140m2 is still important, and far more than one would expect for a 4 bed semi.

lincroft1710

For CT purposes garden land can only be valued at its current use value, it cannot be valued as having "hope value" (the hope that PP would be granted for land to be developed. CT is a tax on "dwellings" not building land.

The size of the house is important as it will be this that VOA use to compare with other houses which sold in 91. 140 sq m would be above average size for a 4 bed semi. For this size I would have expected an F max, unless house is one of those streets where prices are inexplicably higher than those in the vicinity.

p.kane1981

Hi, really need some advice and I’m totally lost so I’m hoping someone can help.
I’m moving house on the 19th of next month and the council tax banding is a B, I’ve had a look around on OVA website and the house two doors down has been rebranded to an A.
The house is the same as my new one, in every way so I’m thinking of trying to rebrand. My question is “how do I do it”, really could do with a step by step guide. The new authority I’m moving to is Stockport. Thank you in advance if anybody can help...

cepheus

My question is “how do I do it”, really could do with a step by step guide.

Go to step 4 here

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/council-tax-bands-change?dd

Jem123

Hi I live in a close with semi detatched and terraced houses (the terrace section of the close is only 3 houses joined instead of 2) It seems that all the semis are band D while the 3 terrace are band C. They are all the same value - in fact the end terrace sold for more than ours!

Our house is regarded as a semi despite being joined to our neighbours on one side and then attached to our garage which is attached to the next door neighbours garage on the other side. We are actually linked to our neighbours on both sides and cannot access the garden other than through the house or garage.

I have been trying to find out whether this will have made a difference to the original banding?

Also some houses have integral garages whilst ours is on the side - would this make a difference to the banding too?

lincroft1710

Jem - this type of linking is quite normal, I lived on an estate where all the bungalows had been built in this way. In my view this is semi det as only 1 house is attached to another house.

At the end of the day all that really matters in CT banding is what would each house type have sold for as at 1 Apr 1991. If there is sales evidence to support the difference in bands, then the bands should be correct. Or it may be policy for that area that semis are D, IT/ET are C.

The only way you can be sure is to ask Valuation Office Agency (Eng/Wales) or Assessor (Scot) to investigate your band, quoting the sales of yours and the terrace house. The downside is that the terraced may be increased to D.

marty33

Hi, ive just been trying to work out if its worth applying for a rebranding of the tax band on my home. My street is all bungalows, all built to the same spec and all on the same band except for 1 which i believe has had its tax band lowered. Alot of the homes have been extended over the years but the recent selling prices of all but one of the homes points to a lower tax band, do you think its worth my trying?