South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma has signed into law the Local Government Municipal Property Rates Amendment Act, the Presidency said on Sunday. The Act seeks to regulate the categories of property in respect of which rates may be levied.
It also looks at regulating the time frames of publication of the resolutions levying rates and what must be contained in the promulgated resolution. It Provide for the exclusion from the rates of certain categories of public service infrastructure;
It gives powers to a municipality to levy different rates on vacant land and power to the MEC of Local Government to extend the period of validity of a valuation roll by additional two years.
According to the Presidency, it amends the dates on which a supplementary valuation takes effect and Address the problems that have been experienced in the implementation of the Local Government: Municipal Property Rates Act, 2004.
Commercial Property Owners Feeling the Squeeze
The biggest threat facing the commercial property market is the increasing cost of municipal rates and services tariffs together with ever increasing “stealth taxes” — and the result has to be strong downward pressure on net rentals.
Commercial property owners have been up in arms over municipal rates and taxes increases throughout South Africa, questioning the legality of rate hikes charged to landlords in accordance with the law.
Read more at SA-Commercial Prop News
