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

lincroft1710

amypullen81 wrote: »

Hi all
Some advice please. Out house was a new build 5 years ago. Our neighbours are on the same band as us but on doing the second check (valuation in 1991) it states we should be a band lower. Should I challenge this ?

If by "valuation check" you mean using house price indices, be aware that these are inaccurate, so your band could well be correct. You could ask for a band review, but you will have to provide other evidence to support your belief that your band is incorrect.

adamjames0690

I would be most grateful if anyone can please provide any advice/ information with regards to appealing your council tax band in Scotland.

My partner and I bought our property in September 2017 for £260,000 and received a letter advising us that our council tax band would increase from an E to F band (increase added £500 to our council tax, incl. water and sewerage charges).

The Assessor at the time advised us that it was determined on what the house would have been valued in 1991 and told us that we would have very little change in appealing it. The Assessor sent us similar properties (not identical) in other areas as an example.

Our neighbour recently bought their house which is identical to ours for £275,000 and was notified that her council tax band would be increased from an E to F. She appealed and was awarded council tax band E.

I don't feel this is fair at all given the advice we received. I don't begrudge my neighbour at all (good on her). I do feel however that we were given the wrong information, which we can evidence in emails sent by the Assessor back in 2017.

In Scotland it would seem that you can only appeal within the first six months. Can anyone please advise if this is correct and whether or not there are other avenues to pursue? I am thinking of seeking legal advice to see if I can take them to court, however I wanted to see if I would have any grounds to do so.

Thank you in advance for any helpful advice.

Kind regards,

Adam

ddks

adamjames0690 wrote: »

I would be most grateful if anyone can please provide any advice/ information with regards to appealing your council tax band in Scotland.

My partner and I bought our property in September 2017 for £260,000 and received a letter advising us that our council tax band would increase from an E to F band (increase added £500 to our council tax, incl. water and sewerage charges).

The Assessor at the time advised us that it was determined on what the house would have been valued in 1991 and told us that we would have very little change in appealing it. The Assessor sent us similar properties (not identical) in other areas as an example.

Our neighbour recently bought their house which is identical to ours for £275,000 and was notified that her council tax band would be increased from an E to F. She appealed and was awarded council tax band E.

I don't feel this is fair at all given the advice we received. I don't begrudge my neighbour at all (good on her). I do feel however that we were given the wrong information, which we can evidence in emails sent by the Assessor back in 2017.

In Scotland it would seem that you can only appeal within the first six months. Can anyone please advise if this is correct and whether or not there are other avenues to pursue? I am thinking of seeking legal advice to see if I can take them to court, however I wanted to see if I would have any grounds to do so.

Thank you in advance for any helpful advice.

Kind regards,

Adam

An assessor should not be telling you that you have no chance.
When was your neighbours appeal determined? If it's within the last 6 months and your property is exactly the same (no extensions) then you could ask your neighbour what evidence they presented. Better still look on the Valuation Tribunal Service website, decisions and listings, select decisions, search your postcode, you should find the decision.
Just bear in mind once you appeal, the assessor so can take up to 4 months to give you decision, before you can appeal
Good luck

lincroft1710

adamjames0690 wrote: »

In Scotland it would seem that you can only appeal within the first six months. Can anyone please advise if this is correct and whether or not there are other avenues to pursue? I am thinking of seeking legal advice to see if I can take them to court, however I wanted to see if I would have any grounds to do so.

Thank you in advance for any helpful advice.

Kind regards,

Adam

There is a 6 months time limit in England, Scotland and Wales for appealing a CT band. However there are a couple of exceptions, one being if a Valuation Tribunal has determined a lower band for a dwelling within the past 6 months and you believe your home should be similarly reduced; you can make an appeal quoting the VT decision.

But if the reduction was simply agreed between your neighbour and the Assessor, with no VT involvement, then you have no right of appeal. You can still ask the Assessor to review the band in light of the agreed reduction with your neighbour.

Rocker_666

Can anyone answer a question i have. I want to know if i manage to reduce my council tax band will it affect the value of my property?

Thanks

lincroft1710

Rocker_666 wrote: »

Can anyone answer a question i have. I want to know if i manage to reduce my council tax band will it affect the value of my property?

Thanks

I have never known a property's value be affected by a lower CT band. If anything it may make the property more attractive to prospective buyers and a high CT band can potentially put off some prospective buyers.

poshphil

I am going to assume the answer is 'not worth it', but we have recently moved into a new build and although we haven't got our band, a couple of other houses with the same style have popped up on the VOA site today at Band G. Most other houses with the same number of bedrooms seem to been in this band as well (which I get is the more reliable indicator).

The only flag otherwise is the Nationwide calculator which would put our band towards the bottom of Band F (around £130k in a £120-£160k band). Because it was so low I just wondered, but I think we're actually just falling into the oddity that although we're technically in the East Midlands region, we're actually only about 10 miles south east of Stockport, so perhaps North West prices are more accurate (this would put us *just* in band G).

lincroft1710

poshphil wrote: »

The only flag otherwise is the Nationwide calculator which would put our band towards the bottom of Band F (around £130k in a £120-£160k band). Because it was so low I just wondered, but I think we're actually just falling into the oddity that although we're technically in the East Midlands region, we're actually only about 10 miles south east of Stockport, so perhaps North West prices are more accurate (this would put us *just* in band G).

Which is exactly why the Nationwide calculator is inaccurate. Regional boundaries are ill-defined at the best of times and crossing a county boundary in the same region can produce vastly different prices. At their absolute best, unless it analyses individual towns/cities, any house price index can only give a very rough idea of prices 28 years ago.

poshphil

Thanks, I thought that was probably the case.

Paulasb12

I need help with appealing my council banding. I gave them the house value in 1997 and used the halifax pricing calculator to show the cost it would have been in 1991 but they want more evidence. They say halifax calculator isn't accepted and should use stamp duty. But in 1991 stamp duty wasn't paid on houses £600000 or under. What information can I use to reduce my council band. My house is in d band when it was worth and paid for £59950 in 1997 and the d band council tax is £68000 and over