The consensus of opinion among Rawson Properties franchisees is that the much publicised hikes in the residential property valuations for rates calculation purposes have so far by and large been reasonable '“ and relatively accurate, says Bill Rawson, Chairman of Rawson Properties.
'So far,' said Rawson, 'we have come across relatively few cases where the valuations have been out of line'
Certain people, said Rawson, will protest vociferously about their new valuations but that will be usually because they have not kept in touch with the rises in property values since the last valuation in 2000 '“ before the boom. Since 2000, the average Cape home has almost trebled in value.
'What will be interesting,' said Rawson, 'is to see how City calculates the new rates. The new formula for rates has not been released, but we do know that that new targets will be far higher'
The big worry, said Rawson, is that higher rates might force those already struggling to make ends meet to sell their properties '“ and switch to renting. How the rate increase will affect rentals, he added, also remains to be seen.
'This would be a pity, especially as it has always been City Council policy to encourage home ownership,' he said.
Asked what homeowners should do if they find themselves lumped with a higher-than-expected valuation, Rawson said that the simplest course would be to contact an experienced estate agent and ask for a valuation to give an indication of the accuracy of the Council figure. If then found to be too high, the Council, he said, have indicated a willingness to consider objections.
'There are,' he said, 'bound to be cases where a property is given the average rating for homes of its size in its area but where other factors, e.g. its location next to a busy road or railway line, severely affects its value'
The big challenge facing the City Council team, added Rawson, will be to implement the decision to debit all sectional title owners directly rather than charging their body corporate with the total rates, water and electricity bills.
'We are now hearing of cases where the sectional title owner has received Council valuations through the body corporates post box. This is definitely not acceptable. Organisations running bodies corporate with three four thousand members cannot be expect to act as referral or transit agents for the Council. A huge administrative task now faces the Council to get accurate direct addresses of all sectional title members'
