July 17, 2009

Ratepayers in the Tamworth Regional Council area will begin receiving their annual rate notices from Monday (July 20).

A record 25,873 notices are being mailed this year – up 225 on last year’s issued number.

The rate notices have been mailed today and should start to hit Tamworth mailboxes Monday.

They have a new look echoing the corporate colours and with a more simplified design and easier-to-read information.

The notices total $48.97million for all rates and annual charges and that figure is just over $4million more than last year’s total.

TRC’s forecast revenue from all land rates is $23.7million, an increase of 3.5% from last year’s $22.9million.

TRC’ s corporate director Steve Bartlett says two brochures are included with the rate notices this year. One is a TRC ratepayer newsletter outlining some of council’s projects and activities for the next year and the other is a Valuer-General's Department flyer which details information about land values.

TRC has to use the land values provided by the Valuer-General to determine their rating.

Mr Bartlett said the council region has also seen more growth in the past 12 months, and that is reflected in the rate notices.

“We expect to field plenty of calls from Monday as people start to receive their notices and have queries about their rate levies, not just because of the effects of land values on their properties, but also because some properties are receiving new improved services this year, and there are some rises in water, sewer and waste charges,” Mr Bartlett said.

The average Tamworth residential rate notice, on a property with water, sewer and waste services this year is $1,979. Last year it was $1,875.

Fast facts about this year’s rates mailout:

• 4,363 properties will receive pensioner rebates worth a total of $1.792million – down by $66,000 from last year and about 183 notices less than last year
• 21,905 notices are mailed to TRC postcodes – 322 more than last year’s total
• 3,968 are mailed to places outside the TRC postcodes – to more than 600 different postcodes, including overseas – that’s 97 less than last year’s figure
• The biggest rates bill this year is $67,054 for a Tamworth business property
• The smallest notice being issued is $199 for a farmland block at Barraba
• The average Barraba residential notice (with services) is $1,477 ($70 more than last year), the average Manilla notice is $1,478, at Kootingal it is $1,416 and the villages range from $654 to $1468
• The average Tamworth business property rate is $4,146
• The average business rate notice in Barraba is $1,841, in Manilla $1,863, in Moonbi or Kootingal $1,654 and in villages $1,500
• Nearly 3,000 farmland rate notices are issued and the average notice is $1,465
• One in 10 people pay their rates by direct debit – but TRC would like to see more paid that way
  Arrears (or rates and charges owing to TRC) are at $3.35million.
• The first rate instalment is due August 31 and there are a number of ways payments can be made. TRC promotes Direct Debit as the easiest, cheapest and most cost-effective form of paying rates.