Top official explains why City’s rates review is critical

24 January 2017

 

The constant review of the City of Johannesburg’s Property Rates Policy by all stakeholders is critical as rates are at the centre of service delivery, according to Veli Hlophe, Head of the City’s Property Rates Division.

 

Hlophe was speaking during a Property Rates Policy meeting at the Hillbrow Recreation Centre in the Johannesburg inner city on Monday night, the third in a series of public consultations being rolled out throughout the city to review the current rates.

A total of 21 such meetings will be held in all the City's seven regions over the next three weeks. The first two of the meetings were held in Dlamini and Orlando East in Soweto in Region D on Saturday January 21. The extensive public consultative process, which takes place in January and February every year, gives the City an idea of how the residents feel about their rates.

On Monday night, Hlophe gave a detailed presentation of the basis the City applied when determining new rates. The presentation covered topics such as the rates policy review process, legislative background, the context for the review of the rates policy and proposed changes in draft rates policy.

“We must understand that rates go up every year. Rates and taxes drive the revenue of the city. This is why it is important that we must talk about property rates,” Hlophe said.

He said when the document is revised at the end of the process it would be used to change property owners’ rates. He said the City would from July 1 embark on a property valuation process and would share as much information as possible with the residents.

“Property owners are allowed to object if a property is devalued. Objections and appeals have a time frame, which is two years. No fees are charged. Once the entire process has been finalised, a date will be announced when property owners can come in and view the value of their properties. Sub-offices will also be set up in all our regions,” he said.

During Monday night’s meeting, inner city residents said they were not benefiting from the whole process because many of them were mere tenants and not owners of the properties they lived in.

They complained that they had never met the property owners. Instead they had to deal with landlords. Residents can make comments on the current policy on ratescomments@joburg.org.za.