Uniform rate plan sparks backlash from rural property owners

 

Morangup residents have fired up against a council decision to create a uniform rate in the dollar, warning it will drive up costs for rural property owners and potentially deliver a bigger-than-expected financial blow when rates are finalised.

The modelling in the report to council that supported the uniform rate pushed GRV rural residential rates up by five percent and UV rural rates up 21 percent.

But critics of the move are bracing for a bigger hit when rates are finalised, as the percentages in the council report were based on last year’s lower rate setting.

This means the projected increases outlined in the report could end up even higher if this year’s rates are set above last year’s levels.

Uniform rates benefits some more than others

Council voted to change the method of rating from July 1 this year moving from differential rates to a uniform rate in the dollar for properties valued using Gross Rental Value (GRV) and Unimproved Value (UV) at its March meeting.

The uniform rate won’t significantly change the shire’s total rate revenue, which will stay about the same according to the report to council.

But it will have a big effect on many household budgets.

The report to council showed the biggest changes affected two groups: 410 properties in the UV General category saw their rates drop by 58 percent, whereas 198 UV Rural properties saw their rates jump up 21 percent.

The biggest category (1,055 ‘GRV Rural Residential’ properties) had a five percent increase.

Whereas 626 GRV Residential properties saw their rates fall by four percent.

A call for accurate data

But the figures modelled in the report to council were from last year and they will be outdated when council ratifies its new budget and sets its rates for the 2026-2027 financial year.

This means, the small decreases modelled in the March report to council could disappear and small increases could spike if council sets a rate this year higher than last year’s 2.2 percent.

The neighbouring shires of York, Chittering and Victoria Plains have a uniform rate structure.

Whereas Northam and Goomalling still use the differential rating model and so did Toodyay before the change last month.

In a statement the shire said this change will make rates fairer, clearer, and easier to understand, and it will help ensure long term compliance with rating laws.

“This isn’t about raising more money — it’s about simplifying the system and improving transparency,” the shire said in a statement.

“Slight reductions or modest increases may appear on individual rates notices, depending on your property type and valuation.”

But the actual percentage increases and decreases for this year are yet to be released.

The Toodyay Herald asked the shire to confirm that the figures to be advertised for public comment in May will be based on the final 2026–27 budget and updated modelling, rather than last year’s figures presented in the March report to council.

So the community could make informed submissions.

The Herald did not receive a response to its questions before we went to press.

The opportunity to have a say

A statement on a Morangup community website slammed the decision to hit Morangup residents with a rate hike — while Toodyay town residents rates went down — as divisive.

Although the shire said the change was not about raising more money, Morangup residents are being warned to brace for the first of many rate rises if council proceeds with its plans to flatten the system.

“The March decision is the method change — the reshuffling of who pays more and who pays less,” it said.

“It does not necessarily include whatever broader increase the shire may later apply through the 2026/27 budget.”

Morangup residents opposing the uniform model said they were not reacting to one isolated tweak.

They were reacting to a pattern over time of rising costs, town-centric assumptions, heavy shire spending programs, weak outer-locality voice, and now a council decision that shifted more of the rating burden onto rural residential, while giving town residential a reduction.

The unform rating model will be put out for public comment next month.

The proposal will be advertised for 21 days, seeking community feedback so the community can have their say.

By Rashelle Predovnik