Council Tax Challenge at tribunal

Chandler85

Council tax is an antiquated system anyway.  There are roads where one side is one council and the other another council, where the difference in the cost in band D properties is £500+ easily.  It's madness.

However, as above, a Semi is worth more then a Terrace, a garage is better then no garage.  Heck back in 1991, a normal car even fit in a normal garage!

If the Terrace was worth 120k in 1991, and yours was worth 121k then the band is still different.  Given the difference is probably going to be more then that (probably semi versus terrace), it doesn't seem totally unrealistic.

AdrianC

Chandler85 said:

Council tax is an antiquated system anyway.  There are roads where one side is one council and the other another council, where the difference in the cost in band D properties is £500+ easily.  It's madness.

Are you suggesting local authorities shouldn't be able to set their own CT rates?

The banding is consistent.
The valuation date is consistent.
The proportions of the base between bands is consistent.
The maximum annual increase is consistent.
The discounts available are within consistent bands.
The only thing local authorities have any discretion on is the base rate for CT.

But that's within each of the UK's four "nations". Think about people who live on the border of England and Wales, or England and Scotland... And, of course, the vast majority of this country is on GB, so doesn't even have to contemplate an actual international land border.

lincroft1710

AdrianC said:

jmmo20 said:

Even within the same small development I live in, with a bunch of 8 other houses, they are all now tax band E even though they are virtually the same 3-bedroom 124 sq m except ours and my neighbour which are 129 sq.m 
Their houses are terraced and ours are 2 semi.. another difference is the garage, they don't have any but that shouldn't matter for tax band purposes.

You are hung up on floor area. That's NOT what it's based on. It's based on nominal value, based to 1991.

So a semi with a garage WILL be worth more than a terrace without. Blatantly obvious, right?

Band E is nominal 1991 value of £88-120k
Band F is nominal 1991 value of £120-160k

If the terrace were worth ~£110k in 1991, then - yes - a semi with garage would easily be worth more than £120k then. But if the terrace were £90k, then probably not.

So what were properties selling for around there in 1991...?

Floor area is actually very important when calculating CT bands. In the VOA we always used to look at the established CT bands of houses of a similar type and size when banding new or extended dwellings. Similarly when defending bands at VT we would show sales evidence and settled appeals of dwellings of same type and size as the appeal dwelling. 

AdrianC

Floor area is important in determining comparables, yes. But it's not what CT banding is based on.

lincroft1710

AdrianC said:

Floor area is important in determining comparables, yes. But it's not what CT banding is based on.

It was how we analysed 1991 sales, after the type, what was the size of the dwelling. 

jmmo20

lincroft1710 said:

AdrianC said:

Floor area is important in determining comparables, yes. But it's not what CT banding is based on.

It was how we analysed 1991 sales, after the type, what was the size of the dwelling. 

Is there a solicitor or someone I can hire to handle this ? We are talking about a potential £1000 difference yearly that I would rather spend overpaying my mortgage.

AdrianC

Band E is defined as 11/9 of band D, band F is 13/9. The difference is, obviously, 2/9 of band D.
So for 2/9 to be £1000/year, band D would be £4,500.

The average for England for the current financial year is £1,818.
ttps://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/905425/Council_tax_levels_set_by_local_authorities_in_England_2020-21.pdf

That means the difference between bands E and F for the mythical average area is £404, not £1,000.

lincroft1710

jmmo20 said:

lincroft1710 said:

AdrianC said:

Floor area is important in determining comparables, yes. But it's not what CT banding is based on.

It was how we analysed 1991 sales, after the type, what was the size of the dwelling. 

Is there a solicitor or someone I can hire to handle this ? We are talking about a potential £1000 difference yearly that I would rather spend overpaying my mortgage.

A surveyor would be the professional you need, but the vast majority of CT appeals are dealt with by the appellants themselves. They don't come cheap.