Noosa, Gympie mayors call for review to Queensland’s land valuations

Mayors of Noosa and Gympie councils are lobbying for a review to the land valuation process with fears homeowners could be hit with unaffordable rates hikes.

Noosa Council and Gympie Council mayors have said they area worried about rate rises if the government continues land valuation increases in the regions.

The Noosa and Gympie council mayors are lobbying the state government for a land valuations review with fears ratepayers will be hit with significant increases this year.

The Noosa Council said that in Queensland, under the Local Government Act, councils calculate rates as a percentage of land values, as assessed by the state’s valuer.

The Valuer-General released 805,000 valuations in March for 24 councils including Noosa – where values increased 62 per cent on the 2022 valuations and Gympie where there was a 40 per cent increase.

Noosa mayor Clare Stewart said the latest valuations found some values doubled in 12 months.

“If we simply feed the Valuer-General’s new valuations into our rating structure our ratepayers face average increases of around 44% – before CPI – at a time when many in our community can ill afford it,” Ms Stewart said.

But a Department of Resources spokesman said valuations were just one of options councils use to determine levels of rates.

“Councils have wide ranging powers to manage rates including differential rating, setting a minimum rate, rate capping and the averaging of valuations before rates are assessed,” he said.

“Many mayors have already indicated that the valuation increase in their area won’t result in an equivalent increase in rates.”

Noosa property prices have risen sharply over the past 12 months.

Noosa Council acting corporate services director Trent Grauf said council would use a differential rating structure which would, where possible, moderate the impacts of property valuation increases on rates.

“There seems to be little understanding as to why land valuations were conducted two years in a row for some councils and not for others,” he said.

“Sunshine Coast Council did not incur a second consecutive valuation, whereas Gympie and Noosa Shire did.”

Ms Stewart said she had requested a meeting with the state’s Resources Minister Scott Stewart to call for changes.

Gympie mayor Glen Hartwig said he would be joining Ms Stewart in her lobbying endeavours.

“There appears to be little common sense to conducting land valuations two years in a row, at the peak of a cycle,” he said.

“The Gympie region was revalued last year and to have the inflated impact of the property cycle thrust on council again, with no apparent logic, causes unnecessary distress for residents.”

A spokeswoman for the Resources Minister said he would meet with the two mayors this month.

The Department of Resources spokesman said the Noosa and Gympie land valuations reflected the market as at October 1, 2022.

“Any changes to the market after that date may be used for future land valuations,” he said.

Property owners can object to the government determined land valuation via the State Valuation Service.

To query or lodge and objection call 1300 664 217 or visit the website here.