Council tax assessment, seperate dwelling or not? help needed

kashton_2

Hi all,

I have a friend who is having a nitemare with the council tax assessors, this is a bit of a long story so please bear with me...

He basically lives in a converted garage attached to the home owners house,
It has running water, cooker, toilet, central heating etc
Things like the water and central heating he has no control over as this is all controlled by the main house.

There is a connecting door between his room and the main house, (as it is a garage it opens into their kitchen) but this is always kept locked.

After living there for 7 years (yes its a very cosy garage!) the landlord put his name on the electoral role and this was how the garage became banded, they are asking for over £1000 a year.

He was told by the assessor that there was something very simple that could be done to stop the banding and not qualify the garage to be deemed a separate dwelling but the officer said he wouldnt say what this was in fear of him losing his job,

He as now had a visit from the bailiffs demanding money as he hasnt paid anything yet while this dispute is ongoing.

Is there anyone here that could shed some light on this?

I know he would be extremely grateful

Many thanks

mbga9pgf

Granny annexe tax. Blame Labour. The law is quite clear; if he has his own washing, food preperation and sleeping areas, he is liable for council tax at the appropriate band.

http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/property/buying_and_selling/article6282146.ece

Its the law. Dont like it? Remember not to vote Labour next time.

He might well be liable for all the council tax owed for the time he was there. If I were him, I would move out, as then it would become the landlords problem. Council tax is a tax on the property, not the individual. If there is nothing in the AST about paying council tax, the responsibility will lie with the landlord IMHO.

CIS

If there is nothing in the AST about paying council tax, the responsibility will lie with the landlord IMHO.

The wording of the AST cannot dictate the liability for council tax - liability for the council tax is determined solely by council tax legislation.

As the property is banded by the valuation office/scottish assessors office as a seperate dwelling then the resident of the property is liable for the council tax in the vast majority of cases.In this case it doesn't appear to fall under the regualtions that would cover an HMO and therefore the resident is liable.

lincroft1710

He's actually quite lucky!!! If it was a completely separate dwelling on its own plot with no restriction regarding ability to sell separately from main house, your friend would be liable for 7 years' back tax!!!!!! As it is classed as a "disaggregation", he is only liable for the back tax since the date the Valuation List was altered.

If the landlord carries out alterations so that the "garage" is no longer self contained, e.g. removes kitchen and all water pipes/cooker connections and makes good all walls and floors or removes toilet and makes good etc, then it will revert to one dwelling and your friend can share these facilities with the landlord. I don't see this happening however and should LL decide to go down this route, he should discuss his intentions with the Assessor before committing himself to any expense. And your friend would still be liable for CT until the alterations were completed and property became one again.

lincroft1710

mbga9pgf wrote: »

Granny annexe tax. Blame Labour.

Completely wrong!!!! CT and the concept of "granny annexes" were introduced by the Conservatives in 1993.

PasturesNew

I've enquired about somewhere similar just this week, ct and all bills included.... I'm not interested in it though as from this distance it smells like an illegal alteration to the house, I don't know if they need planning permission but there's no planning been applied for for it ... shame, it was cheap.

kashton_2

Thanks for all the replies so far, i have passed these on,

Whats the main issure for him and his LL is what this small simple change could be? Its costing the LL £3500 a year at the moment and they just cant find the answer, according to the VO it would all be legal and change the main house and this garage into one property again?

We think its the door leading into the front of the garage, its been replaced with a douvle glazed sliding door, he also has an adjoining door to the main property, if the sliding door was locked and access could only be gained by going through the main house would this make the difference?

They arent trying to get out of the council tax completly, just trying to save £1000 on top of the £2500 they already pay

lincroft1710

Locking the main entrance door would not solve the problem, the door would have to be removed and replaced by a wall or window. Also if the access from the main house is via its kitchen, then this is a "grey area"

From VOA publication "Council Tax Bands and Self Contained Units"

Access:
A self-contained unit does not need to have its own access to be regarded as self-contained. For example, separate living accommodation with a shared hallway and stairs would be classed as self-contained. However, if the only access to the separate living accommodation is via a living room – such as a reception room or bedroom of the main house it will not be regarded as self-contained.


So a kitchen may not be regarded as a "living room".

Finally if the two units could be merged into one, there is a possibility that the new single band could be higher than that the current band of the main house.

justjohn

Council red tape is a pain. Looks like this is an annexe. Not seperate as it cannot be seperated from main resedential house.

Look up what the definition of Anexe by the local council is. (it may be better if it was classed as part of the main house,it may not be able to be classed as an annexe)
The locked door however will not help as you are making the property stand alone/seperate.

We have a property house/shop. We get no rates on shop(small buisness relief). We do not pay rates on the house AT ALL as it is empty and cannot be split form the shop as there is an adjoining door/electric/water/toilet/heating shared. However i would like to bet if i locked it they would attempt to charge me rates on the house(even if it is empty).

You need to look at the rates rules from YOUR council and find the loophole. They will not tell you, the above clause we found, in our case it had to be refered as our local council office had never heard of it.(we got over 1 years council tax refunded).

Best to pay in meantime but make it clear you do not agree.

What council district is the property in???

CIS

You need to look at the rates rules from YOUR council and find the loophole. They will not tell you, the above clause we found, in our case it had to be refered as our local council office had never heard of it.(we got over 1 years council tax refunded).

The regulations apply the same to every council.

Which 'loop hole' did you use in your case, off the top of my head I cant think of why you are not paying council tax on the house. Assuming it has been banded by the VO the its rateable for council tax purposes.

There may be a few council tax exemptions which would be applicable but only one of these would be unlimited.

justjohn

CIS wrote: »

There may be a few council tax exemptions which would be applicable but only one of these would be unlimited.

Our shop/house have seperate rates. Because we use the shop and not the house. The shop/house cannot be rented/used seperatly from each other that was the exemption clause.