Summary

• The City of Cape Town’s General Valuation (GV) 2018 Roll will remain available on the City’s website but the in-person inspection of the Roll will close on Friday 29 March 2019 when the city-wide inspection venues close
• Online objections can be submitted electronically via the City’s e-Services portal or via email until 30 April 2019
• No extensions for objections will be considered
• The City does not make a profit on rates. The income is used to fund essential and shared services

‘The good news is that property owners will still have the opportunity to view the GV2018 Roll electronically and to lodge objections online via the City’s e-Services portal or via email until Tuesday 30 April 2019. The City has heeded the call from ratepayers to see the extent of their properties on the Roll which is on the City’s website. This, together with a rates calculator which will be available from 1 April, will give residential ratepayers an indication of the potential new rates payable due to the change in valuation,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Finance, Alderman Ian Neilson.

The GV2018 Roll contains some 875 000 registered properties in Cape Town.

Currently residential property owners have access to a rates estimator on the City’s website. But with the tabling of the City’s Draft Budget tomorrow, a rates calculator will be available from 1 April 2019 where property owners will be able to calculate the rates for all different property types in order to see the actual rates which will be effective from 1 July 2019.

The calculation of the rate-in-the-rand, which determines the rates a property owner will be paying from 1 July 2019, will be published in the 2019/20 Draft Budget.

‘The City determines how much money it requires to provide the optimum range of services to its residents, as well as the likely provision that needs to be made for rebates and indigent support. The City does not raise more money than is required to provide necessary services such as fire services, clinics, traffic services, libraries, cleaning and parks. There is no profit on municipal rates. 

‘Given the average market-related increase of residential properties in Cape Town of 34% in the three years between the GV2015 and GV2018, a significantly lower rate-in-the-rand can be expected than the current rate,’ said Alderman Neilson.
 
How to inspect the GV2018 Roll
 
Electronically until 30 April 2019:

• Visit the City’s website www.capetown.gov.za/generalvaluations
• Online objections should please be submitted electronically via the City’s e-services portal until 30 April 2019. Please visit https://eservices.capetown.gov.za/irj/portal
• Property owners are able to register for e-services to submit their objections online. This is the preferred option, as it is captured instantly on the City’s system.
• Alternatively, objectors can also download a pre-populated objection form and return it by email, including properly motivated corrections, until 30 April 2019. Please submit objections to valuationsobjections@capetown.gov.za

How to activate the municipal accounts feature on e-Services

• Log on to e-services
• Submit a certified copy of your ID in order to activate the municipal accounts option
• Once you have applied to activate this service, the City will take a few days to verify your information before granting access

If objecting

• When submitting an objection, it is important to provide a motivation as to why it is believed that the valuation is incorrect. It is advisable to use sales of comparable properties sold on or around the date of valuation (2 July 2018) as motivation for an amended valuation 
• A comparison with neighbouring properties on the valuation roll does not suffice as a motivation for an objection
• Please note that no late objections will be considered 

How property valuations are done

The City chooses to conduct a general valuation every three years, instead of the legislatively mandated four-year period, in order to mitigate against large fluctuations in property values between general valuations.

The City Valuer makes use of a computer modelling programme called Computer-Assisted Mass Appraisal (CAMA) which uses sales data, aerial imagery and other property information (for example the property’s location, size, number of rooms, outbuildings, general quality and view) to determine the market value of a property.
 
The results are then reviewed by professional property valuers and adjusted if necessary. There is no involvement by councillors in the determination of property values, nor may they be involved in dealing with any objection to a valuation.
 
The City’s Valuation Office takes pride in being the leader in South Africa in respect of its valuation processes and implements several precautions to ensure that the valuations produced are accurate and market-related, including undergoing an independent external audit.

Please watch this video for more information on the GV2018 process: https://youtu.be/zk2DEZY4U-o