Second home council tax

moomoo4444

So I rent in London due to my job ,I have bought a house ,where I grew up .My family still live in the very same village yet I am being told that this is not my primary address and will have to pay in total 150% on my council tax ?
I am back home at least once a month , maybe for the weekend or for a couple of weeks .
It!!!8217;s the only house I own and have always paid council tax for the last 5 years ,can the council tell me where my primary address is ?

CIS

It!!!8217;s the only house I own and have always paid council tax for the last 5 years ,can the council tell me where my primary address is ?

Not specifically but it's got to be done whilst looking at the specifics of the situation for council tax purposes. The exact position depends on a multitude of things.

00ec25

moomoo4444 wrote: »

So I rent in London due to my job ,I have brought a house ,where I grew up .

I have sentimental attachments to my childhood home but bringing it with me when moving around the UK would be quite an achievement. I assume you meant bought, as in purchased, rather than the past tense of "to bring"?

moomoo4444 wrote: »

I am being told that this is not my primary address and will have to pay in total 150% on my council tax ?

you have misheard. The 150% CT rate would apply only if the property was sitting unfurnished and unoccupied and had been like that for at least 2 years
https://www.gov.uk/council-tax/second-homes-and-empty-properties

you need to show you have a second home, you do not have an empty property. In this day and age it is likely that you will not get a discount for having a second home, but nor will you pay more than 100% CT . You spend a day a month up there so patently the property must be furnished to allow you to live in it and you certainly do occupy it for that time so it is not empty. therefore it easily fails any attempt at levying the 150% empty property rate

moomoo4444 wrote: »

I am back home at least once a month , maybe for the weekend or for a couple of weeks .
It!!!8217;s the only house I own and have always paid council tax for the last 5 years ,can the council tell me where my primary address is ?

ownership is irrelevant. You "live" in 2 places, London and up north.
Unless you are eligible to claim single person discount it is largely irrelevant which of the 2 properties is classed as your "main" home since it is rather unlikely given council finances that any council still offers a discount on "second" homes. You are much more likely to have a 100% charge on each property. You will not have a 150% charge on one of them though.

if you do wish to claim single person discount you are more likely to have a battle to show that up north is your main residence given your split of time. Not impossible, but will be a battle since there is little on paper to show why it remains your main home, other than sentiment.

PasturesNew

The only way round it would be to give up your work-address and go into an "all bills included" house share..... and return to your proper house every weekend to get away from the numb-nutz you're having to share with who are driving you mental

AdrianC

00ec25 wrote: »

you have misheard. The 150% CT rate would apply only if the property was sitting unfurnished and unoccupied and had been like that for at least 2 years

I wonder if the key is "in total 150%"? Single occupation in each, so 75% of the London CT, and 75% of the CT for the other property.

00ec25

AdrianC wrote: »

I wonder if the key is "in total 150%"? Single occupation in each, so 75% of the London CT, and 75% of the CT for the other property.

I see now I missed that, however, if OP thinks that then he'll be living in a third home cuz he'll be at Her Majesty's pleasure in jail for CT fraud.

175% yes, possible, but 150% no way. SPD is claimable once, and once only, since it relates to where you live, not how many in total you own and/or occupy.

CIS

Yep, needs more clarification as there's several ways that 150% can be calculated - some of which could be right and some could be wrong. The diagnosis can only be found when the symptoms are known in full.

moomoo4444

Council still saying they will decide ,have asked to see where my car etc is registered .I have rented for 11 years so already paying 100% council tax on both properties .All my stuff is registered down here .
Just seems really wrong ,I get that due to local needs etc but as I say I am a local and my sister even lives opposite ..
I have Sky ,telephone,broadband and heating bills to prove it that The house is used ....grrrr just wrong on so many levels
I will retire there ,in about 5 years as my job cannot be done up north without travelling 148 miles to the nearest department .
I will however appeal it

CIS

moomoo4444 wrote: »

Council still saying they will decide ,have asked to see where my car etc is registered .I have rented for 11 years so already paying 100% council tax on both properties .All my stuff is registered down here .
Just seems really wrong ,I get that due to local needs etc but as I say I am a local and my sister even lives opposite ..
I have Sky ,telephone,broadband and heating bills to prove it that The house is used ....grrrr just wrong on so many levels
I will retire there ,in about 5 years as my job cannot be done up north without travelling 148 miles to the nearest department .
I will however appeal it

Are you the 'sole resident' at your 'home property' ?

'Sole or main residence' can certainly be argued at appeal, I've seen plenty of cases over the years. As they said in one of the primary cases on the matter;

The qualification “sole or main” addresses the fact that a person may reside in more than one place. We think that it is probably impossible to produce a definition of “main residence” that will provide the appropriate test in all circumstances. Usually, however, a person’s main residence will be the dwelling that a reasonable onlooker, with knowledge of the material facts, would regard as that person’s home at the material time. That test may not always be an easy one to apply, but we have no doubt as to the conclusion to which it leads in the present case.

There are other aspects which also need to be considered under council tax case law but the quote from Williams is a good one. A good appeal is a case of knowing which cases to quote to help you along and hoping the wind is blowing the right direction on the day.