city of swan uv/grv rating review
At their meeting on 13 December 2017 City of Swan Councillors unanimously resolved to:
1) Defer the general Unimproved Value (UV) Rated Property Review until the review of the Local Government Act 1995 currently being undertaken by the Minister for Local Government and Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries is legislated.
2) Upon completion of the Local Government Act review, a report be prepared for Council outlining: a) the impacts and implications of the new legislation in regard to the City’s rating strategy, including rating options and recommendations, b) the legislative requirements of rating associated with reviewing the method of valuation for rating purposes, and c) the proposed approach to engaging community for the purpose of reviewing the method of valuation for rating purposes.
3) Acknowledge that whilst the general review of UV rated properties is deferred, Council is required to review the method of rating individual properties where it is informed of subdivisions, change of use and developments as these occur from time-to-time.
4) Write to the Minister for Local Government reiterating Council’s resolution of 30 August 2017 “to request that a review of the current ‘ability to pay’ rate methodology and investigate a policy that is simpler and more transparent” and request that it be considered as part Local Government Act review and detail to the Minister the concerns of the rural residents of the City raised at the Annual Meeting of Electors held on 12 December 2017.
5) Advise the affected UV rated property owners, relevant stakeholders and Government agencies of Council's decision as soon as possible.
6) Note that Council will still face equity and consistency issues within the UV rated properties already converted to Gross Rental Value (GRV).
7) Record the reason for the motion being that the pending review of the Local Government Act 1995 may change the interpretation of 'rural land' which could have a direct impact on the review of the method of valuation of rateable properties.
1) Defer the general Unimproved Value (UV) Rated Property Review until the review of the Local Government Act 1995 currently being undertaken by the Minister for Local Government and Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries is legislated.
2) Upon completion of the Local Government Act review, a report be prepared for Council outlining: a) the impacts and implications of the new legislation in regard to the City’s rating strategy, including rating options and recommendations, b) the legislative requirements of rating associated with reviewing the method of valuation for rating purposes, and c) the proposed approach to engaging community for the purpose of reviewing the method of valuation for rating purposes.
3) Acknowledge that whilst the general review of UV rated properties is deferred, Council is required to review the method of rating individual properties where it is informed of subdivisions, change of use and developments as these occur from time-to-time.
4) Write to the Minister for Local Government reiterating Council’s resolution of 30 August 2017 “to request that a review of the current ‘ability to pay’ rate methodology and investigate a policy that is simpler and more transparent” and request that it be considered as part Local Government Act review and detail to the Minister the concerns of the rural residents of the City raised at the Annual Meeting of Electors held on 12 December 2017.
5) Advise the affected UV rated property owners, relevant stakeholders and Government agencies of Council's decision as soon as possible.
6) Note that Council will still face equity and consistency issues within the UV rated properties already converted to Gross Rental Value (GRV).
7) Record the reason for the motion being that the pending review of the Local Government Act 1995 may change the interpretation of 'rural land' which could have a direct impact on the review of the method of valuation of rateable properties.
- The City of Swan is currently undertaking a review of the rating of more than 4000 Unimproved Value (UV) rated properties across the City. These ratepayers are being asked to provide evidence that they should not be changed from UV to Gross Rental Value (GRV) rating.
- The process to date has been poorly implemented causing confusion and angst among ratepayers and without any community consultation.
- The date for the return of the forms has now been extended until 22 December 2017.
- Click here to access list of dates and locations of community drop-in information sessions.
- The City has produced a new FAQ sheet which can be downloaded here or accessed at https://www.swan.wa.gov.au/Services-support/Council-Rates/Your-Rates-Explained/Your-Rates-Questions-Answered#section-4
- A copy of the initial letter, form and FAQ sent to residents can be accessed here.
- A copy of the drop-in session dates is available here
- It is best to take someone with you if you attend one of these sessions to take notes and as a witness to the advice and information that is given.
- Click here to read the Department of Local Government Guidelines for changing the method of valuation in local government areas.
- Click here for a copy of the Valuer General's Guide to Rating and Taxing Values
- Click here for a copy of SPP 2.5 Rural Planning 2016
- it is possible to estimate the impact a change of rating from UV to GRV might have on an individual property. To do this look at the current rates notice. The GRV valuation is mentioned on the rates notice under Emergency Services Levy Category 3-residential (ESL), multiply that amount by the residential rate of 0.072813, add the emergency services levy and waste, and the result will provide an indication of if the property rates will go up or down if changed from UV to GRV rating. This method does not work for category 5 ESL. The values do change from year to year so this is an indication for the current year only.
- The City of Swan gave the following response when asked about the validity of using the above method: "In regards to your question of how to calculate the rates component for a property by using an existing Gross Rental Value (GRV) please note that the GRV included on a rate notice for any UV rated property is supplied from the Valuer General Office only to be used for the calculation of the Emergency Service Levy. However, it is possible to use the same GRV to try to estimate the amount of rates if they are to be charged on this basis but we must stress that this is only an estimate as the GRV can be subject to change as well as the rate in a dollar, which is adopted by Council as a part of our annual budget. We cannot predict what is going to be the Council decision in regards to the rate in dollar for 2018/2019 financial year. For your information, I can confirm that the deadline to respond to the form has been extended to the 22nd December 2017."
Financial Services & Rates City of Swan
- The City of Swan Council voted to undertake this review at the Council meeting of April 12 2017. Access the report from the minutes here.
- Access draft hansard of Chris Tallentire's parliamentary grievance 23 Nov 2017 and the Minister's reply
- http://echonewspaper.com.au/swan-rate-review-backflip/
- http://www.watoday.com.au/wa-news/rates-grab-swan-valley-residents-claim-rural-rates-review-will-force-subdivisions-20171120-gzpc6z.html
- http://echonewspaper.com.au/rural-residents-swan-rate-review-unfair/
- https://thewest.com.au/news/wa/review-of-properties-in-swan-valley-could-land-thousands-with-huge-rate-hikes-ng-b88665817z
- http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-11-23/residents-battle-council-over-rural-definition/9184692?WT.ac=localnews_perth