Council Rates

[red750]

Just received my council rates for 2023/24. $1622.80. That does not include garbage, recycling and garden waste collection, which will be billed separately.

[old man emu]

What is the Unimproved Capital Value of your block? I thought that rates were determined by that figure.

[red750]

Listed on rate notice as site value: $885.000

[Marty_d]

I'd be tempted to sell and rent for the rest of my life.

[facthunter]

Mine's on Improved Capital value. THEY do UCV when they don't want you to sit on an empty block. The Shire Secretaries salary is linked to shire Income so that's why LITTLE blocks are more general.. They are also hard to sack. It's YOUR money Ralph.  Nev

[willedoo]

I just checked my latest bill. Rates here are paid half yearly, so my rate for six months is $810.90. That's without wheelie bins and town water which I don't have. Added to the rate bill is an arts and heritage levy, environment levy, transport levy, state emergency management levy and the rural fire brigade levy, totaling $145.50. There's a state government pensioner rate discount of $111.90 and a council pensioner discount of $145. All up, that makes the net rates bill $699.50 per half year which is cheap for this district. My rates here on the coast are generally cheaper than they are three hours west of here in some country towns.

 

Just as an edit, that's based on the state government unimproved property valuation of $510,000.

Edited August 22, 2023 by willedoo

[willedoo]

I pay my rates off weekly via direct debit at $20 per week. It suits me as I don't get a big bill every six months, and it suits council to have money in advance. When I first started paying weekly, the $20 wouldn't quite cover it and I would get a bill at the end of six months for about $15 to make up the balance. With rate increases that difference grew to over $100. When I went on the age pension, the pension discount means the $20 more than covers it and I accumulate a positive balance. Currently I'm a whole rates bill ahead thanks to the pension discount. The pension discounts on rates, electricity and vehicle registration add up to around $850 per year. I also now save about $480 per year because I ditched Telstra and went to Aldi for the mobile phone, so I'm living quite a bit cheaper than a couple of years ago. It all adds up.

[Bruce Tuncks]

Our rates here on the farm are over $6000 per year. Apparently they were less before the fires at Kinglake, when many farmers cancelled their insurance due to it being poor value for money after it hiked.  So the government, based in Melbourne, decided to add the insurance to the rates so if you don't pay, men with guns will come n get you.

[onetrack]

Peter, don't you get a State pensioner discount? Or is that $1622.80 after the pensioner discount? Living in the suburbs in a big city is getting expensive, but the property values are rocketing, too.

The alternative is to sell up and move to a cheaper suburb/region, which quite a few people have done.

 

SWMBO and I live on a 594 sq m block within 5kms of the Perth CBD, in a supposedly "desirable" older suburb. Our rates are based on GRV (Gross Rental Value). That figure is $18,720.

 

Rates in total amount to $1642, of which $261 is ESL (Emergency Services Levy). ESL covers the cost of emergency services such as Fire brigade and SES. There's a $40 charge for CSS (Community Safety Service - Ranger and Security).

Waste services are $380, which covers all waste and which gives us a number of Rubbish Tip vouchers, where we can get rid of tyres, old paint, oils, old furniture and electrical goods.

 

The State Govt gives us $611 Pensioner rebate, which means our total rates bill payable by us, is $1031. We can pay it monthly for little extra cost, so we do that.

Our house is worth close to $1,000,000 - which is pretty staggering, seeing as SWMBO paid $100,000 for it in 1990. I can't see where property values can keep increasing at the rate they have been for the last 20-25 years.

 

https://www.dfes.wa.gov.au/emergency-services-levy

 

Edited August 22, 2023 by onetrack

[red750]

After I got over the initial shock, I looked again, and here is the breakdown.  I did misread a couple of things.

 

General Rate on $1,000,000 CIV     1415.35

Pension rebate rates                       -253.20

Fire Services Property Levy Fixed    125.00

Pension Benefit FSPL                       - 50.00

FSPL Variable rate                               46.00

Public Waste Service Charge              67.85

Kerbside  Waste Service Charge      184.80

Food and Garden Organics Bin           87.00

                                                         1,622.80

 

I looked up our address on Domain.com.au, and they quote the estimated value as $1,360,000. (mid range value.)

Sale history (when we bought it) Dec 1978, $50,500.

 

They offered the option of instalments on the last day of each month by direct debit for 9 months, basically $182 per month.

This suits me, close to me budgeting of $100 per pension day. ($200 per month.)