The rates in Cork County and City Council are due to be revised in the near future.
Each rate number with your local authority has a corresponding property number in the Valuation Office. Typically, the Valuations Office number consists of six digits whereas the rates number is a combination of digits and characters. They are not the same number.
On a typical Cork County Council rate bill, the rate number appears on the top left-hand corner and in the box below you will note there are five columns. In the first and second column, the valuation is recorded (example €10.00). In the third column, you will note the Valuation Office number. Further down you will observe again the valuation and accessible valuation listed accompanied with the Annual Rate Valuation (ARV) which is currently 76.99. If you multiply the valuation by the annual rate valuation, then you will arrive at the current rate demand.
An example of a rate payable on a property with a Valuation of €10.00:
| (a) Rateable Valuation | €10.00 |
| (b) Annual Rate on Valuation (ARV) | 76.99 |
| (c) Rates Payable (a) x (b) | €10 x 76.99 = €769.90 |
Presently anyone with a rateable valuation of €20.00 is being increased to a rateable valuation of €40.00 and when you apply the ARV an annual rate of €1,539.80 will increase to €3,079.60 which is a substantial increase.
On receipt of the Valuations Office revised application you have a period of 28 days to appeal this. It is very important that if you are not satisfied with the rateable valuation you appeal it at this point. Otherwise, the appeal has to go to the Tribunal. In order to ascertain if the increase in the rateable valuation is justifiable, it may be necessary to obtain an independent valuation report. We are aware of Gerard O’Callaghan (087 2886067 | gerard@eracork.ie) of Downey McCarthy, Cork conducts such independent valuations.
Common misconceptions are that a material change might be changing from a shop to an office, this is actually not considered a material change. The assumption is that a business might revert to a commercial venture. The Valuation Office appear to be using floor area irrespective of trading activity.
Please review the attached link https://www.valoff.ie/en/revision/before-submitting-a-revision-request/ which details material change.
If you have a question about any issue covered in this blog or any legal matter,
you can contact a member of our team on + 353 21 4777031 or info@odonovanandco.ie.
Disclaimer: The Information provided above is for guidance purposes only, and O’Donovan & Co Solicitors LLP have no liability arising from reliance on anything contained in this article nor on this website.
