Some Gold Coast apartment owners are expressing concerns after receiving rate hikes of up to 50 percent, following the council’s decision to bill occupants based on the value of their property, rather than the value of the land.
The changes could result in some residents paying an additional $676 (US$442) annually on their rates bills.
Opponents of the move say many high-rise dwellers on the Gold Coast are elderly or students, and that what has been dubbed a “view tax” on higher-level apartments is both unfair and unexpected.
Under the council’s new rates rules, people living on the fifth floor of a complex or lower will not face an increase. However, those living on higher floors will pay staggered rate increases, up to 40 or 50 percent for the highest floors.
Those against the change argue contend this approach is unfair because not every high-rise apartment has a good view, yet all occupants on the same level would have to pay the same rate increase.
Speaking on ABC Radio Brisbane, general manager of the Strata Community Association of Queensland Laura Bos said residents had not been consulted on the move, nor given a chance to adjust.
“I think we were blindsided pretty much, like every apartment owner on the Gold Coast and this is one of the things that’s been terribly handled to be really frank,” she said.
Bos referred to the new rates model as a “two-speed rating system” that residents were left to discover on their rates notices.
She also criticised the fact people in standard homes were still being billed on land values rather than views, saying it ran counter to the council’s take that the move was about equity and parity.
“If you’re going to do it, do it for everybody so everybody should move to property valuations, because the two are vastly different,” Bos said, adding that people in apartments were doing it tough just like anyone else.
Bos said she believed the move was a consequence of councils struggling for state and federal funds and questioned whether the move could be taken on in other parts of the state.
“If you’re going to do something like this how about you consult with the people who are affected?” she said.
Adjustment Ensures Fairness, Says Council
A spokesperson for the Gold Coast City Council said the decision over rates had been made to ensure a fairer system for people living in apartments.“The city has adjusted its method used to calculate general rates for high-rise units that are a principal place of residence to ensure fairness and equity across all ratepayer categories,” the spokesperson told The Epoch Times on behalf of Mayor Tom Tate.
“The general rate for high-rise units will vary depending on the unit’s rate categorisation which takes into the unit’s size and floor level.”
The spokesperson said the change ensures unit owners are charged fairly based on the effect their unit size and floor level have on the property’s value.
“The previous method did not take these factors into account,” they said.
“For example, under the previous method, a first floor high-rise principal place of residence unit may have paid the same general rates as a 40th floor penthouse.
“This change will also bring rates in line with the method used for other units that are permanent or short-term rentals.”
