Council tax banding rip-off

notbritishgas

OP, why not do a search to see what banding other 4 bed properties have in your vicinity. If similar properties are band D then you will have a basis for an appeal.

http://www.voa.gov.uk/cti/InitS.asp?lcn=0

antrobus

macman wrote: »

A national reval would, to put it bluntly, lose more votes than it gains. ...

What nation are you talking about? There's already been a revaluation in Wales, and so (as far as that nation is concerned) CT is based on 2003 values.

macman wrote: »

....No government (of any colour) therefore has the political will to do it, so it's been shelved-probably indefinitely.

There is a certain lack of enthusiasm in both Scotland and England for a revaluation. It's inevitable that there will be one at some point in time in the future, given that using 1991 values as the tax base will become increasingly absurd as time marches on. I wouldn't hold my breath though. At some point in time in the future might well be 2050.

vivatifosi

notbritishgas wrote: »

OP, why not do a search to see what banding other 4 bed properties have in your vicinity. If similar properties are band D then you will have a basis for an appeal.

http://www.voa.gov.uk/cti/InitS.asp?lcn=0

That's a good idea. As you are currently in the 6 month window of a change, you have a right to go to tribunal if you disagree, rather than being only able to appeal to the VOA. Make sure that the houses are as similar as possible though.

The VOA disagreed with my selection when I did this (though I then backed up with 1991 evidence), however thankfully the VTS took my side.

In short, you may still need to do the long exercise, but it will quickly get you to a point where you know whether or not it is worth it.

Buzby

Scotland has never based prices on sale values - always on rental, so as these did not fluctuate widely as purchase prices were irrelevant.

If the property is similar in size to others surrounding it, and had only been internally modified, there is a good case to argue the status quo. Check the Valuation Roll to see the banding charged to your neighbours and if you ar soon to be th odd one out, challenge on this factor.

Twiggy_34

Individual properties might need to have their banding re-considered. This may apply to you if:

Your home has a higher value because a previous owner has carried out major improvements, such as building an extension; this would usually affect the banding for the new occupier and not the person who had the work done (see page 7 ‘Home improvements and council tax banding’)

This is just one of the bullets, and is taken from http://www.voa.gov.uk/corporate/_downloads/pdf/VO7858_understanding_ct.pdf

I genuinely understand your frustration, and don't doubt it's worth some effort to see if you can put forward a valid appeal. It's certainly a shame that the you weren't aware of the potential band change at the time of purchasing the property. If there was no actual extension but was an attic conversion, I would personally start with contesting it based on the point I've copied in above. But it's fair to say that a 4 bedroom property can easily be valued at more than a 2 bedroom property of the same exterior proportions.

Here's another hopefully useful quote from the leaflet, this simplified explanation later on in the leaflet states:

For council tax, the basis of measurement for all houses and bungalows is the building’s gross fl oor area, including wall thicknesses. This will include bay windows, chimney breasts etc., but will generally exclude areas with headroom under 1.5 metres (e.g. under sloping ceilings in attic rooms).

I've been on the opposite end when I rented a 1 bed flat (3 rooms in total) and discovered it was on a higher band than the larger 2 bed flat above. I appealed and they were happy to reduce the banding based on the evidence provided.

The leaflet is certainly worth a read to see if you can find enough information to support an appeal. Good luck!

Oh, and sorry for your losses, I lost my dad last year, such a tough time to go through for anyone.

theGrinch

have you tried the general calculator via nationwide?

http://www.nationwide.co.uk/hpi/calculator/calculator.htm

I guess you need to get a few valuations today and input the results.

lincroft1710

Buzby wrote: »

Scotland has never based prices on sale values - always on rental, so as these did not fluctuate widely as purchase prices were irrelevant.

Not true. CT in Scotland is based on sale prices just the same as in England and Wales.

http://www.saa.gov.uk/counciltax.html

lincroft1710

00ec25 wrote: »

its set at 1991 because that is when CT was introduced and when the properties were banded the info was easily available

CT actually came into force on 1 Apr 1993, but the work in preparing the bands was done in 1992 hence 1 Apr 1991 used as Valuation Date.

OP if you appeal against the band increase and your appeal ends up going to a Valuation Tribunal, the VOA will send you details of relevant 1991 sales which they consider supports the band increase. At that time you have the right to ask for sales evidence of properties you consider would be helpful to your case.

Any future revaluation will almost definitely have the antecedent valuation date no more than 2 years before the date the revaluation comes into force.

A revaluation for England was scheduled for 2007, but was cancelled in late 2005, I was overjoyed as it meant I could take early retirement from the VOA.

foxyruby

00ec25 wrote: »

I am sorry for your loss , I too lost my parents within months of each other and it was hard to move on from that for years afterwards BUT

you are the one who titled the thread rip off , hardly wording chosen by a balanced and clear headed person

you are blinded by the idea that your problem of a one band increase would be solved if your property was rebased to 1995 value. You are ignoring that to do such an exercise everyone in the whole country would be revalued and this would mean 100s of thousands of people would be rebanded as a consequence (like as happened in Wales) and that would be so unpopular none of the political parties has the balls to do it at the moment, even with all the austerity measures currently underway

having just moved in you do (as i assume you know) have a 6 month window of opportunity to appeal. have you read through the MSE guide on how to do it?
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/council-tax-bands-change

Hi 00ec25

I wouldn't be so daft as to assume that my problem would be solved by a 1995 revaluation. I am aware that my house might end up in a higher band anyway. All I am asking for is the opportunity of seeing this for myself. It's very disempowering for people not to have a transparent way to check this for themselves. I realise that moving revaluations to 1995 would inconvenience a lot of people, but the alternative is for all of us, both now and for future generations, never to be able to check for ourselves the valuation banding that the council chooses for us. I think this is unfair and for that reason I stand by my choice of the word 'rip-off' because we are being denied transparency, even if the original intention of the banding in 1991 wasn't to rip us off.

foxyruby

antrobus wrote: »

What nation are you talking about? There's already been a revaluation in Wales, and so (as far as that nation is concerned) CT is based on 2003 values.



There is a certain lack of enthusiasm in both Scotland and England for a revaluation. It's inevitable that there will be one at some point in time in the future, given that using 1991 values as the tax base will become increasingly absurd as time marches on. I wouldn't hold my breath though. At some point in time in the future might well be 2050.

That's really interesting. Thank you!