Rate increases highest in coastal belt

as posted on TheWest

The pockets of well-heeled western suburbs householders are among the hardest hit by council rate increases this year.

Five of the seven councils between the coast and the city will ask residential ratepayers for at least 8.5 per cent more cash than at the same time last year, with Subiaco posting the metropolitan area’s greatest rate increase of 13 per cent.

The gross rental value used to calculate council rates leapt an average of 38 per cent across Perth suburbs this year and most councils have set an increase of between 5 and 8 per cent.

A spokeswoman for Subiaco said the revaluation by the Valuer-General’s Office was responsible for the average 13 per cent residential rate increase but said business rates were only increasing by an average of 5 per cent. She said that at the last revaluation in 2005, business rates increased by 12 per cent and residential rates by the lower figure.

She said had there not been a whole district revaluation the increase would have been just 6 per cent.

Rate increases for southern corridor councils were also generally on the high side, with Rockingham and Mandurah voting for 8.5 per cent average increases on improved residential land. Gosnells, Melville and Victoria Park were also close to 9 per cent.

The lowest percentage average residential rate rise was 3.25 per cent in the City of Perth. Fremantle City Council increased its rates by an average 6 per cent. Swan, Joondalup and Bassendean increased rates by 5 per cent and Bayswater, Vincent and Stirling by just less than 6 per cent.

In June, WA Local Government Association president Bill Mitchell said the local government cost index had increased by 5.1 per cent over the last year and rates would need to increase by at least that amount.

He urged ratepayers to recognise that costs of core factors essential to a council’s operation, including fuel, skilled labour, construction and finance, had skyrocketed over the past year and would have to be passed on to ratepayers.

The association calculates its cost index based on a combination of the consumer price index and the construction index, which it claims is more representative than just the CPI, which is a measure of the increase in cost of an average basket of groceries.

DANIEL HATCH


as posted on TheWest