Business rates increase

[samuel5]

Hi all

With the business rate increase being front page news at the moment I am suprised I cannot find any threads on this?

On LBC radio tonight there were businesses saying their rates will be increased by 75%!

I received a letter recently saying the ratable value for our building will increase this year but it was nothing too scary.

How come some businesses are not seeing much difference but some are saying they will have to close down?
Am I missing something?

Thanks

Sam

 

[jack44]

I'm listening to it here now, guy just called in and said his rates have gone from £10k a year, to £107k a year.

There's no logic in this decision by the government, its going to decimate town centres and industrial estates.

Does anyone have a logical explanation for this?

 

[Mr D]

Was £10k too low? Is 107k too high?

 

[Scalloway]

Is it rateable values that are increasing or have rates bills been sent out?

 

[SamStones]

Ratable values have been re assessed country wide with the south hardest hit with increases. Some areas of the north have seen large decreases. Personally I've seen mine increase by about 7%

Lots of smaller businesses will have their rates removed altogether due to the increase in the small business rates relief.

 

[ChrisRM]

Rateable Values are based on the 'market value' of the property at a set date in time. The values have been redone for 2017 and the date the market value would be for this is 1st April 2015.

Therefore the theory is that the Rateable Value for your premises is what someone would pay in rent for the property if they were to take it on in April 2015.

The last time it was done was April 2008. Therefore the increase, or decrease, is associated with the change in rents between April 2008 and April 2015.

Some will have big increases because rents have gone up. Central London is a prime example. Rents on Oxford Street have in grown massively in this time. Therefore Rates are going to go up hugely. The same for parts of East London where they are becoming gentrified and rents are increasing.

There will be decreases where rents have come down from April 2008.

There is logic to values. But the multiplier is where there is ambiguity. The values are what the values are. You can appeal them if you think it doesn't represent the rent at April 2015. But the multiplier, how much you pay as a % of the value, is up to the Government. This changes every year.