Understanding your new rates account

How often does the City of Cape Town produce a General Valuation Roll (GV Roll)?
In terms of the Local Government: Municipal Property Rates Act, no 6 of 2004 (The Act), the City must produce a GV Roll at least once every four years.

What is a General Valuation Roll (GV Roll)?
A GV Roll is a document containing the municipal valuations of all the 780 000 properties within the boundaries of the City of Cape Town. All the properties are valued at market value as at the date of valuation, 1 July 2009, in order to ensure fairness.

Who produces the values assigned to the properties on the GV Roll?
The municipal valuer is responsible for the production of the roll and he or she is assisted by professional valuers, statistical analysts, data collectors and a host of diverse support staff.

Why does my property need to be valued?
Property Rates are calculated using the municipal valuation assigned to the property. All properties on the GV Roll are valued at market value as at the date of valuation, thus ensuring that rates are levied on a fair and equitable basis. The date of valuation for the 2009 GV Roll is 1 July 2009.

What is the CAMA system?
CAMA is a computer aided analytical procedure used by trained professional valuers to value the large number of properties within Cape Town. This programme makes valuation cheaper and faster, but no less fair.

Why was my property not inspected?
Site inspections of properties are not compulsory in terms of the legislation. Valuations can be performed using comparative and analytical tools, aerial photography and CAMA techniques.
Properties are earmarked for a physical inspection only when the information available on the valuations database for the property is doubtful or where changes have taken place.

Where can I view my valuation?
At www.capetown.gov.za

What if I disagree with the municipal valuation for my property?
Property owners have sixty days in which to lodge objections to the valuations that they believe are incorrect. The public inspection and objection period begins on 22 February 2010 and ends on 30 April 2010. Objections must be in relation to a specific property, and cannot be lodged against the valuation roll as a whole.

What constitutes an objection?
You may object to any information displayed on the valuation roll, as long as you are able to back-up your objection. It is up to you, the objector, to prove that the market value assessment is wrong. Comparing the valuation to neighbouring valuations does not imply that the valuation is wrong.
If your objection is that the property owner’s name or address is incorrect, this objection will be dealt with immediately.

Unhappiness with the amount of rates payable does not constitute an objection.

The City will not consider the following types of objections:

• Incomplete objection forms
• Multiple objections per objection form
• Objections completed in bad faith
• Frivolous objections to unrelated issues
• Objections not submitted on the official objection form
• Late objections

How do I lodge an objection?
Objections must be lodged on the prescribed objection forms during the prescribed period – 22 February 2010 until 30 April 2010. No late objections will be accepted. A separate objection form must be submitted per property.

Instructions about how to download the objection form can be found on our website.

The completed objections may be submitted as follows:

• Fax – 0865886042
• Post to – The City of Cape Town, For Attention: The Objection Co-ordinator, P O Box 4522, Cape Town, 8000
• By hand - My suggestion is to go this route - in Cape Town, it is the Podium Hall at the Civic Centre, they are helpful and will give you a receipt - Trained staff are available to assist property owners.

You may also request that an objection form be emailed to you.

What if the address on my valuation notice or on the roll is missing or incorrect? Does this mean that the incorrect property has been valued?
The address of the property is not used for the purposes of identifying properties for valuation purposes. The legal description (how the property is recorded in the Deeds Office), usually the erf number, is used to accurately determine the location of a property.

How do I know my objection has been recorded on the valuations database?
An official acknowledgement notice will be issued for every objection received. Only the official acknowledgement notice will be recognised by the valuation office, and should be used in future when querying an objection.

Objections lodged at one of the 18 public inspection venues will be captured directly onto the valuations database and will be acknowledged immediately upon receipt. Please insist on being given your acknowledgement notice before leaving the public inspection venues.

Acknowledgement notices for objections lodged via fax and email will be sent via post. Please follow up with our offices before close of work on 30 April 2010 should you have not received your acknowledgement notice.

What happens after I have lodged my objection?
The objection will be issued to a valuer / administrative officer depending on the type of objection that was submitted. The Municipal Valuer will assess the objection and provide a decision, which will be submitted to the Revenue Department in order for the account to be adjusted. It should be noted that the objection decision may result in a decrease or increase to the original valuation. You will be notified in writing of this decision.

What happens if I am not happy with the decision?
You are entitled to appeal against the objection decision of the Municipal Valuer if you believe you have good grounds on which to base such an appeal. The appeal will be heard by an independent appeal board. Information on how to lodge an appeal will be included in the objection decision notice to be posted.

When will I start paying rates calculated on the new valuation?
Property owners will receive the bills reflecting the new valuation in July 2010.

How much will I pay with the new valuation?
The rate in the rand for residential and commercial properties will only be available in May 2010. However, a provisional estimate will provide an indication of what property owners will pay on the new valuation and the Rate Calculator on our website will allow property owners to get an indication of what their rates payable will be as from 1 July 2010 when the new values are implemented.

Do I still need to pay the new rates, if I do not agree with the value and my objection is still unresolved?
You need to pay rates on your previous valuation until the objection is resolved, even though your rates bill will reflect the new rates amount.

The valuation office will ensure that until your objection has been resolved, you do not receive letters of demand for the unpaid amount. Once your objection has been resolved, any amount owing will be debited or credited to your account.