EKURHULENI’S third valuation roll is open for inspection, as per section 49(1)(a)(i) of the Local Government Property Rates Act, 2004.
Residents can view the roll on the city’s website (www.ekurhuleni.gov.za) or at any municipal office on weekdays between 8.30am and 3.30pm, until June 5.
The Alberton roll can be inspected at the Alberton Customer Care Centre (CCC) – Rates Hall, Alwyn Taljaard Street. Call: 011 999 2365/0150
Objections:
- In terms of section 49(1)(a)(ii) of the Act, any property owner, or any other person who so desires, can lodge an objection in this regard. The objection must be in relation to a specific individual property and not against the valuation roll as such.
- Objection forms are available in the categories agricultural, non-residential and residential. They can be downloaded from the city’s website.
- The completed form must be hand-delivered to the municipal office where the account is held.
- Please remember to bring along the Section 49 notice when you submit your objection, as this will expedite the submission process.
- Please note that no form of electronic submission will be accepted.
- The closing date has been extended to June 5 at 3.30pm and no late objections will be accepted.
Your property’s value
The general valuation roll is a legal document that consists of property information of all rateable properties within the boundaries of the municipality. It is produced according to the Municipal Property Rates Act 6 of 2004, which says that valuations must be done every four years.
The market value is the highest price a willing buyer would pay and a willing seller would accept, both being fully informed, and the property being exposed for sale for a reasonable period. The market value may be different from the price a property can be sold for at a given time (market price).
The purpose of the valuation roll is to determine a fair value of all properties. In some instances, the rates may go up while in others the rates may come down. It must also be remembered that many properties that have not been valued in the past will all now be valued and incorporated into the valuation roll.
The rates calculated for all properties will be determined from time to time by the rating policy, as well as how properties will be categorised.
Types of properties
There are approximately 700 000 properties in Ekurhuleni. They fall into two main categories – residential and non-residential.
The residential valuation is based on market value. For non-residential it is only calculated on the ‘willing seller, willing buyer’ principle. Income-producing properties also consider factors such as market rentals, occupancy and vacancy levels, operating expenses and capitalisation rates.
Other non-residential properties, such as schools and churches, are valued at building costs less depreciation. These are normally properties that do not sell on the open market.
What determines property value?
Factors that influence the value of your property include location, condition of the property and size of the building.
You can lodge an objection against the value, or any entry in the valuation roll that is captured incorrectly, until June 5.
You can lodge an appeal within 30 days of receiving the outcome letter of objections. The appeal is heard by the Valuation Appeal Board.
With approximately 700 000 properties in Ekurhuleni that must be included on the valuation roll, it is impossible to gain access to all properties within a year.
However, because it is a mass valuation, the city uses tools such as pictometry, GIS, aerial photos and views some areas to determine value on those properties. In the 2017 to 2021 term, approximately 40 per cent of residential properties were inspected and all businesses. The Act makes provision for this.
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