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

lincroft1710

mb73 wrote: »

However, I have found a further ten properties on the estate which are similar in size and all sold for between £48-£66,000 in the years 1996 - 2000, so clearly band C.

If these were sales from the HA to tenant, then they are no use as evidence

mb73

Thanks Lincroft1710. I don't know if they were or not, but guess I'll have to give this up. I'm sincerely hoping my neighbour doesn't now get rebanded upwards, but I think the price they bought theirs at should preclude that.

lincroft1710

mb73 wrote: »

Thanks Lincroft1710. I don't know if they were or not, but guess I'll have to give this up. I'm sincerely hoping my neighbour doesn't now get rebanded upwards, but I think the price they bought theirs at should preclude that.

I have to confess that unless you are in an expensive area, I'm a bit surprised a HA 3 bed semi is in Band D, unless you're on the edge of a private built estate.

mb73

No, it's in the middle of what was once an estate with quite a reputation. If we lived in a different county, I doubt it would ever have been banded a D. It's in need of quite a bit of modernisation and doesn't have a drive or garage, and the kitchen can't even accomodate a fridge freezer. It has the strangest layout I think I've ever seen, with two box-type bedrooms, and one large one. I wouldn't even have taken it on, but we were severely overcrowded in our previous place. I didn't realise I'd be going from a B to a D, though. Ho hum.

lincroft1710

Unless you are in Herts or Surrey, I wouldn't be expecting Band D either.

Vaan382

Hi,

I live in a flat complex and although my neighbours are in the same Council Tax band as me, my flat is smaller than theirs (two bedrooms instead of three). Is there a chance I could be in a lower band than them or is the band meant to be the same for the whole building?

lincroft1710

Vaan382 wrote: »

Hi,

I live in a flat complex and although my neighbours are in the same Council Tax band as me, my flat is smaller than theirs (two bedrooms instead of three). Is there a chance I could be in a lower band than them or is the band meant to be the same for the whole building?

Bands are based on 1991 property values.

To give you an example, in England Band C covers properties worth between £52,001 and £68,000. So if in 1991 2 bed worth £55K and 3 bed £65K, then Band C is correct for both.

But if the 2 bed was worth £50K then it would be in the wrong band.

CIS

Vaan382 wrote: »

Hi,

I live in a flat complex and although my neighbours are in the same Council Tax band as me, my flat is smaller than theirs (two bedrooms instead of three). Is there a chance I could be in a lower band than them or is the band meant to be the same for the whole building?

Each property is looked at individually.

It all depends where the assessed value of your property falls - If it is at the upper end of the existing band perhaps it wouldn't lower the band even if the value was looked at again. If it's at the lower end of the existing band there's a better chance that a revaluation could lower the band.

Craig

moneybags1957

Just been successful in getting re banded, E down to D thanks to advice from MSE forum.
Now I have been in the wrong band since council tax inception.
1. Will I get a refund from that date?
2. Can the council appeal VOA decision?
3. Do the VOA inform the council or do I have to?

lincroft1710

1. yes, but some councils have been known to limit refunds to 6 yrs
2. no
3. yes, VOA inform council