Council Tax Discount

lincroft1710

ginpin said:

 Hi Martin and Team, & everyone.  Please can you help?

My daughter and Son in Law bought their house in 2013,  cheaply because of its condition and the need for the vendor to sell
Unfortunately it is in Band   E

They have to pay £265 per month Council Tax. Crippling! In a Dorset hamlet.

They have a 2yr old and 3 month old.
Because together they earn just over any thresholds, they receive no benefits  at all apart from the non means tested child allowance and the maternity stat. pay that my daughter receives atm.

They use a church shop that sells food really cheaply with free fruit, veg and bread when available.  They look out for free nappies on Marketplace  and use the Olio App, this all helps a little. They have family members who make clothes or pass on clothes  for the two little girls.

In their hamlet there are 15 houses, three are Band H, some Band G, some are Band F, three are Band E  and two are Band D. Nothing banded any less.
Where I live, 4 miles away, those Band D would definitely be Band C or even Band B as they are semi detached and look small.

We will try to get  their Banding changed to D as it is definitely smaller and has less bedrooms than the other two houses at Band  E.

In 1982 the previous owners bought the house for £49,000 but we have no idea what it would have sold for in 1991. Possibly under £88,000 ??
We think that those responsible for Banding in 1991, just drove out to this hamlet, saw the big houses ( quite a few ) and based their judgements about all the houses on seeing those impressive large homes.

So we are going to help my daughter and son in law contest the banding and, nearer April,  make enquiries about being awarded the £150
Is there anyway in particular to approach all of this?  Any help would be appreciated.
Thank you.

As you are aware CT is based on 1991 house prices. CT legislation does not allow for state of repair to be taken into account, so all dwellings are valued as being in good repair whether or not that is the case. Looking at the 1982 price won't help, the housing market moved quite a lot in the 9 years up to 1991. The people responsible for banding would have had details of the house (size, type, age, number of bedrooms etc) so could easily have made a rational judgement. 


Just because there are larger houses in the same band does not mean your daughter's band is incorrect, the value of the larger houses could have been at the top of Band E, say £115,000 to £120,000 or there is a possibility that the bands of these houses are too low. Being in a hamlet would make not necessarily lead to lower CT being payable, in my own area the amount per band is higher for some villages than the main town. Your daughter and her husband have owned the house for 9 years, so are well aware of the high cost of paying CT on a Band E dwelling. 


What they will have to do is ask the Valuation Office Agency for a band review and provide evidence/reasons to support their request. I would suggest that they look in surrounding villages and try to find houses of a similar age, type and size as theirs in Band D and give these addresses to the VOA.


If the band is reduced, then that will be the time to enquire about the £150 payment

lincroft1710

p00hsticks said:

ginpin said:

 Hi Martin and Team, & everyone.  Please can you help?

My daughter and Son in Law bought their house in 2013,  cheaply because of its condition and the need for the vendor to sell
Unfortunately it is in Band   E

They have to pay £265 per month Council Tax. Crippling! In a Dorset hamlet.

They have a 2yr old and 3 month old.
Because together they earn just over any thresholds, they receive no benefits  at all apart from the non means tested child allowance and the maternity stat. pay that my daughter receives atm.

They use a church shop that sells food really cheaply with free fruit, veg and bread when available.  They look out for free nappies on Marketplace  and use the Olio App, this all helps a little. They have family members who make clothes or pass on clothes  for the two little girls.

In their hamlet there are 15 houses, three are Band H, some Band G, some are Band F, three are Band E  and two are Band D. Nothing banded any less.
Where I live, 4 miles away, those Band D would definitely be Band C or even Band B as they are semi detached and look small.

We will try to get  their Banding changed to D as it is definitely smaller and has less bedrooms than the other two houses at Band  E.

In 1982 the previous owners bought the house for £49,000 but we have no idea what it would have sold for in 1991. Possibly under £88,000 ??
We think that those responsible for Banding in 1991, just drove out to this hamlet, saw the big houses ( quite a few ) and based their judgements about all the houses on seeing those impressive large homes.

So we are going to help my daughter and son in law contest the banding and, nearer April,  make enquiries about being awarded the £150
Is there anyway in particular to approach all of this?  Any help would be appreciated.
Thank you.

My inital thoughts are

- as they are not within 6 months of having moved into the property, they do not have a right to a formal appeal, but they can request one.

- it's no use comparing with properties four miles away, however similar the actual housing is. You need to be looking at proerties much closer (hence my question above)

-

They cannot request a formal appeal, just a band review.


Where villages/hamlets are concerned, it is often necessary to widen the search area because there may be no comparable properties in the immediate vicinity

Grumpy_chap

ginpin said:

 Hi Martin and Team, & everyone.  Please can you help?

My daughter and Son in Law bought their house in 2013,  cheaply because of its condition and the need for the vendor to sell
Unfortunately it is in Band   E

They have to pay £265 per month Council Tax. Crippling! In a Dorset hamlet.

They have a 2yr old and 3 month old.
Because together they earn just over any thresholds, they receive no benefits  at all apart from the non means tested child allowance and the maternity stat. pay that my daughter receives atm.

They use a church shop that sells food really cheaply with free fruit, veg and bread when available.  They look out for free nappies on Marketplace  and use the Olio App, this all helps a little. They have family members who make clothes or pass on clothes  for the two little girls.

In their hamlet there are 15 houses, three are Band H, some Band G, some are Band F, three are Band E  and two are Band D. Nothing banded any less.
Where I live, 4 miles away, those Band D would definitely be Band C or even Band B as they are semi detached and look small.

We will try to get  their Banding changed to D as it is definitely smaller and has less bedrooms than the other two houses at Band  E.

In 1982 the previous owners bought the house for £49,000 but we have no idea what it would have sold for in 1991. Possibly under £88,000 ??
We think that those responsible for Banding in 1991, just drove out to this hamlet, saw the big houses ( quite a few ) and based their judgements about all the houses on seeing those impressive large homes.

So we are going to help my daughter and son in law contest the banding and, nearer April,  make enquiries about being awarded the £150
Is there anyway in particular to approach all of this?  Any help would be appreciated.
Thank you.

I doubt that a valuation review would be complete in time to receive the electricity grant, even if successful.

For the electricity grant, there are apparently discretionary funds available that may be worth enquiring from the local council.

Grumpy_chap

Well, the local Council e-news letter today proudly declares that the Council are making the £150 energy offer to the poorest 42% of households in the Borough living in property with Council Tax Band A - D, so long as they pay (or start to pay) Council Tax by direct debit.

Unless that is an additional £150 over and above the £150 from the Council, the e-news letter seems to have more errors in than I've had hot dinners!

badmemory

But will the government who offered this actually refund the full amount to the council.  I am prepared to bet not.  A government full of con artists.  It has become embarrassing to call yourself british.

Grumpy_chap

I understood that the £150 rebates would be funded by Central Government making grants to Local Authorities who then in turn make the rebates vie the Council Tax system.

badmemory

I understood that too, but this lot aren't exactly known for doing something that actually was only implied & not actually stated/promised.  At least £10 a throw short.  They won't be able to help themselves.

rapp55

MercatCross said:

emmajones1976 said:

No the suggestion is its a flat £150 for everyone, even those who currently get a myriad of discounts anyway.

What if the 'myriad of discounts' totals 100%, as with the poorest members of society, who receive the maximum Council Tax Reduction?  "If you're on a low income, you may eligible for a council tax reduction of up to 100%, which will be paid to you as a rebate."  Surely those who will be most affected by the energy price increase and on the very lowest incomes therefore won't receive the £150 Council Tax Rebate because their Council Tax account is already zero, or am I missing something?  Even if they did receive the £150, how would it benefit them if they can't gain access to this money unless they can somehow withdraw it from their Council Tax account which would be £150 in credit?

Latest version of government 'fact sheet' says households in bands A to D, including those getting 100% Council Tax Support/Reduction, will get the £150 payment. The money will be paid to householders bank accounts (if they have one).
Properties in A to D will not get the £150 if they are:
1. Empty
2. Second homes
3. Exempt from paying council tax eg occupied solely by students or someone qualifying as severely mentally impaired.
I suppose those in the latter category, if they pay energy bills, might be able to apply for some of the discretionary funds being given to councils. 

badmemory

The LA s are going to have an addministrative nightmare.  Which I guess (actually pretty much know) the gov who are dictating this action are NOT IN  A MILLION YEARS going to pay for this.  So yet another cut to the LAs budgets, oh what a shock..  They don't seem to pay for anything they cause, so nothing new there then.

Grumpy_chap

rapp55 said:

Latest version of government 'fact sheet' says households in bands A to D, including those getting 100% Council Tax Support/Reduction, will get the £150 payment. The money will be paid to householders bank accounts (if they have one).
Properties in A to D will not get the £150 if they are:
1. Empty
2. Second homes
3. Exempt from paying council tax eg occupied solely by students or someone qualifying as severely mentally impaired.
I suppose those in the latter category, if they pay energy bills, might be able to apply for some of the discretionary funds being given to councils. 

I can't understand why group 3 would not receive the energy subsidy. 

Might be complicated in the case of students where there are 3 or 4 (or more) unconnected people in one property, but that is for the Government / Council to overcome with a solution.

Does make sense for students in Campus accommodation, but not privately rented.

Really can't think why the mentally impaired don't qualify.