Rates and taxes warning for Joburg and Cape Town

The cities of Johannesburg and Cape Town will be implementing new General Valuation Rolls in 2023, which will impact the rates and taxes paid by property owners.
The City of Joburg announced this week that it has received the latest General Valuation Roll for properties for 2023 and that residents should expect to pay different rates and taxes once it is implemented.
The roll will be implemented from 1 July 2023, it said.
Property base in the City of Johannesburg in 2023 has increased to over R1.5 trillion from over R1.4 trillion since 2018, when the last valuation was conducted, the city said.
The increase represents a 12% increase in the property base.
A General Valuation Roll is a legal document that consists of property information of all rateable properties within the boundaries of a municipality. The higher the value of a property, the higher the rates and taxes for that property will be.
The city said that the GVR process is important as it helps the city to assign a value and a category to all properties in a municipality. The objective is to generate rates on an equitable basis.
The large increase in valuation implies that residents and property owners are looking at a hike in their rates and tax obligations.
“The new property value means the owners will now pay the different rate once the implementation kicks it,” the city said.
“We have reached the milestone as the city, in that for the very first time, we have successfully compiled and produced the Valuation Roll internally, thus making significant cost savings.”
According to the city, the highest business and single property in the city is valued at R10.1 billion, while the highest residential property is valued at R418 million.
Over 934,600 Johannesburg property owners are on the roll and will find out their property values around the implementation date. Property owners should be on the lookout to receive a formal notification (Section 49 notice) about the new values to their properties, the city said.
The City Manager must publish the roll for inspection in a provincial gazette within 21 days of receipt of the roll. This will be followed by the city sending out the Section 49 Notices, to invite the owners to inspect the Valuation Roll and object should the need arise.
Cape Town
The City of Cape Town is also looking at changes to rates and taxes this year, with the city warning property owners to check the value of their properties when the municipal valuations roll opens for public inspection on 21 February 2023.
Cape Town’s rates will also kick in from 1 July 2021.
If residents are not happy with their valuations, there is a 60-day objection period from 21 February to 30 April 2023.
Read: Deadline for property owners in Cape Town – what you need to know