What are you all up to
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Ha! tell that to the SNP! They have decreed that those of us with larger houses can afford to pay a lot more, without actually looking at anyone's income.
As a result, our CT was arbitrarily increased by £500 per year, + the 3% allowed increase.
So to try to charge us even more for a green bin uplift, from only March to November, which actually saves them money AND produces valuable compost, is not going to go down well around here!!
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Perhaps they will in the end, when the uk fills up with rubbish, it's hard to believe how much we are leaving behind to be discovered in the future. I wonder what later generations will think of us?
We have a little Victorian rubbish dump in a corner of our garden, I wouldn't like to have a modern one.
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Unfortunately rates/poll tax/council tax is a bit of a blunt instrument as it does not take into account a residents ability to pay. I assume they must have looked at a sort of income tax in lieu of rates but decided against it, either because it would not have raised enough money or the burden would fall mainly on higher earners making it as unacceptable as the Poll Tax? I think a revaluation will happen south of the border in time and strangely it would be something I would welcome, perhaps for selfish reasons. I should explain. In 1989 we had a modest extension built on the side of the house which we decided to do rather than move. At the time when you extended the house it was revalued and your Council Tax usually went up a band. Nothing particularly wrong with that. Since then a Government, can't remember which, decided that in future house would only be revalued when they were sold. I suppose at least then you get the true value. However my gripe is that our neighbour at the back of us with essentially the same house as us also decided to have a really large extension. No objection to that either. However because that was after the rules changed I find myself paying £300 a year more in Council Tax in a smaller house. So I suppose over that time I have paid about £4/5000 more in Council Tax. I don't think I have grounds to appeal as in both cases the rules of the time were applied and there are other houses on our estate that would fit either side of the rule change.
David
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Had a mixed day weatherwise today.....Frozen ground, hail, sleet, rain, strong very cold wind, and even a dry spell. Drove over to Walkworth and after a visit to the castle we walk along the river path to just beyond The Hermitage. The wind was whistling thro' the castle but it was sheltered down by the river. After our picnic, in the car, we drove onto Amble Links for a short walk on the beach before the rain came in again. Hopefully it will be a bit drier tomorrow.
Enjoy your stay at Barleywood, OP.
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That is a shame DK and I feel for you. About 9 years ago we put in a redress to the council against our CT. We had watched the Martin Lewis programme on CT claims and decided we would look into ours. After speaking to our neighbours and following the advice given by ML we established that 2 of our neighbours we banded 1 band down from us and another neighbour the same band as us. It took several letters and a visit from a council member of staff. However they did find in our favour and we were given a rebate and dropped a band. All the paperwork we had was passed onto our neighbour who then applied to have theirs adjusted, it was of course adjusted and another rebate made.
It would appear at the time that CT was done it was a bit of a lottery how you were banded, no true evaluation was made but a drive by was done and a guess at the valuation. We won our case because we had photos of the front of our house from when we bought it. At that time our neighbour (semi-detached) had double glazed windows and doors, a drive and garage. The house that we bought had none of them at that time, yet was banded higher.
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The council tax is indeed a very blunt instrument! Up here, SNP promised a review of it, leaning towards a local income tax, which I think would be fair.
Regular taxes are based on the ability to pay, so why not local taxes?
Then when they got into power, they just quietly dropped their plans.
What people have to pay bears no relation to either their ability to pay or their use of local services.
Our son lives in an old farmhouse with about 20 acres of ground, which he bought about 7 years back for about 50% more than what our house is worth today. The floor areas are roughly the same.
But back in 1991, which is when CT is based on, it was the same size but a bit of a wreck apparently, It is therefore band E. The previous owners modernised it and our son has continued to improve it. They are 2 adults and 2 children, their income is roughly 4 times ours.
Our daughter's house is about half the size of theirs and ours, worth about 60% of ours, but is closer to town, very nice and modern and is band F. Their income is about twice ours, they are 2 adults plus a soon to arrive baby.
Our house was built in 1988 and has not changed since then. We are in an upmarket area so were placed in the top band.
All the bands above D had a fixed arbitrary increase imposed, band E getting the smallest increase and our band the highest....an extra £500.
So now we 2 pensioners, who use very few local services and have the lowest income of the 3 are paying the most in local taxes.
We like it here, moving would be very expensive as stamp duty up here is much higher than in England, so we stay and we pay, but no way is it fair!
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Spent a happy hour or six working out my preferred sites for this year, and then booking 'em
! Still waiting for the Paperless Office tho' . And, just in case the bailiffs or Council Tax Inspectors come round alookin' then I'm definitely presenting a moving target So phhhrrrppppt to them and -- I'm hoping to see lots of you on my travels 
B
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I have made arrangements with friends to meet up next week, we all seem to have been hibernating.
Hope your plans go well ABM, nice to make them.
Hmm, I am up quite late, I think that's enough, will go and get some hot chocolate to drink and wish you all goodnight.
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There appears to be no rhyme or reason on CT bandings. Our previous house, before we downsized was 4 bed, 2 bath.... The present house about two thirds of the size on a much smaller plot, yet it's still in the same band.
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I don't know how to be serious!
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If you sell your house and live in a caravan, you won't have to pay it. Think of all that lovely extra money you'll have in your pocket to enjoy your life, Kj!
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Yet another benefit to us in staying in our caravan. The site provides all the bins that we need at no extra cost!
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Yet even another benefit to us in staying in our caravan. The warden cuts the grass for us and disposes of the waste at no extra charge!
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That's not a big problem compared to the posts I've just read on here cariadon, where everyone is complaining about extortionate council tax, extra charges for bins, cost of cutting grass, re-cycling waste. The answer is simple: sell your house and get out to enjoy the freedom of the road. Then you won't have all those horrible bills to pay and will start enjoying your retirement instead!
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Thank goodness I don't have that problem, Kj because of embracing the freedom of the road. No property means NO BILLS!
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It amazes me how everyone keeps complaining about costs associated with their property such as council tax and how unfair it is. Yet you all tell me how much better it is to have property than enjoy my lifestyle. It doesn't make sense to me. Either you grin and bear it or change to my lifestyle by getting out of it! The solution is in your hands!
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Houseowner / tenants have to pay more CT, because some people don't pay anything at all, and still want the same services.
Before we moved the CT was high for the village because the fraternity site was not contributing to the pot as their excuse was that they were not staying for long,
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Up too early this morning 0730hrs, must be the excitement. Wind and rain have ceased and sailors pants (blue sky) showing
Will leave here about 0900hrs as we can arrive on site before midday
, no awning to dismantle and pack, just bedding, clothes and food to put in car (5 minutes), drive to storage then away. Whatever your up to enjoy.
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Are you really sure it's bliss, you sound as if you are trying to convince yourself. You don't sound too happy. Every comment that has been made by posters you have turned it back to your lifestyle, is it because you are not happy, have you not got anything else to say.
You say no bills, but you are still deep in dept.
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Do you not realise Malc, that most of us could change our lovely comfortable houses for a Caravan if we wanted to? We have the choice because we have been sensible with our money in the past and have not lived above our means and on credit!
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Malcolm, I think you will find the main complaints are around the nonsense of its calculation, rather than the concept of contributing towards local services. If the system was based on a form of local income tax, that was consistent across the country, I think we would all be a lot happier.
You don't totally escape by the way. Your site fees will include a contribution to those costs somewhere.
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Yes but the debts are coming down. My personal bank overdraft is already paid off and my business account overdraft has been reduced by recent payments made from my income. Also I made an additional payment into my interest free Tesco Club Credit card over and above the minimum payment to making extra funds available for forthcoming site fee payments. HMRC also owe me a tax refund which will substantially reduce debts further. I'll most probably be out of debt in the not too distant future because of the amounts of money I'm going to receive!
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No because I understand their kind of complaints from the days when I used to own property. I don't have those complaints anymore because I got OUT of property ownership. The more they complain, the more it convinces me that I've done the right thing!
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When 'over there' we have to pay
