View Tax: Mayor Tom Tate delves into controversial unit charges

It is time to set the record straight over the current debate surrounding rating categories for some Gold Coast properties, writes Mayor Tom Tate. HIS VIEW

It is time to set the record straight over the current debate surrounding rating categories for some Gold Coast properties.

Mainstream media has chosen to label this change as a “view tax”. That’s the first inaccuracy.

To understand the change, it is important to lay bare the facts.

The city has 267,000 residential properties under a range of rating categories;

Of these, around 135,000 (51 per cent) are properties which are part of a Community Title Scheme;

A Community Title Scheme is common when properties exist in a unit complex, low-rise, or high-rise style development;

Given land supply shortages, it is expected more future properties will be created within CTS-style developments.

Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate has given his take on the view tax debate

A key point to understand is that council levies general rates based on the value of the land, in accordance with the Local Government Act 2009. The State Valer-General Office provides land valuations for stand-alone properties and council uses this as one of its tools in determining minimum general rates.

Unlike a stand-alone home, the State Valuer-General does not provide individual valuations for each unit lot within a CTS. Instead, the Valuer-General issues one valuation for the site and that valuation is ‘shared’ between each unit/apartment on that site.

The City’s new rating structure has been adopted to ensure all units within a CTS pay a fair contribution through general rates, using the same ‘shared’ valuations model.

This dispels the myth that it is a tax based on what someone can see out their window. It is about addressing an inequity (which has existed since 2006) which has seen stand-alone properties of a similar value to a unit, pay higher rates.

After all, a homeowner in Robina paying more rates than a unit owner in Main Beach – when both properties are of the same value – is unfair. We have addressed that anomaly.

Here are some more facts: prior to this change, 96 per cent of the city’s ratepayers were paying higher rates than other similarly-valued properties; this change impacts only 12,200 properties (from the city total of 267,000 residential properties); the increase in weekly rates is as low as $3.20, rising to a maximum of $13 per week for just 97 identified properties.

Let me provide a quick example between a house in Molendinar worth $1.3 million and a unit on level 21 in Surfers Paradise, also worth $1.3 million. Under the new category, both properties will pay the same rates where as before this change, the unit was paying around $150 per annum less – yet receiving the same services.

Which brings me to the second myth: council will secure more revenue via this change. Incorrect.

What the change has done is result in a redistribution of revenue across the rate base. In fact, if these changes had not been made to the general rating categories for PPR (Principal-Place-Residence) Vertical CTS, the remaining 96 per cent of properties across the City would have experienced higher general rate increases going forward.

That outcome would fly in the face of equity principles and our council, like every council in Queensland, is administered under the Local Government Act 2009.

At its core, the act requires councils to be both equitable and transparent in their decisions impacting ratepayers.

Before making the decision to adjust some rates, the City undertook a comprehensive rating structure review in 2023. We did this with the assistance of an expert consultant and all rating categories were reviewed to ensure equity across the board.

The key objective of the review was to ensure the rating structure was fair and equitable for all ratepayers.

The final change to the rating structure, adopted in 2024-25, was about ensuring all properties across the City make a meaningful and fair contribution through general rates, consistent with the principles of valuation-based rating.

As Mayor since 2012, I have worked with successive councils to deliver a low-rates mantra and we have achieved that. In the 13-year period (2012-2025), any general rate increase for a principal-place-residence has been kept at, or below, CPI. I challenge any other council in Australia to match that record.

Today, council remains committed to keeping rates and charges increases as low as possible for PPR residential properties, including those in vertical CTS.

In the 2024-25 financial year, total rates and charges for a PPR single unit dwelling with a median rateable valuation increased by just 4.24 per cent, which is less than the average inflation for the previous 12 months of 4.8 per cent.

In effect, while the general rate for the vertical PPR CTS in 2024-25 has increased, this is to achieve a more equitable general rate than was previously levied. It is all about equity, not ‘views’ from a window.

Today, the new rating structure aligns with the existing structure in place for Non-Principal Place of Residence / Permanent Rentals (NPPR/PR) and Tourist Rental (TR) vertical CTS lots that has been in place since 2006.

The changes have been extensively tested for fairness and equity by referencing market valuation comparisons of CTS units and single unit dwellings to ensure the objectives of valuation-based rating are being achieved while still calculating and levying general rates based on the site valuation as required.

I will concede that we have not communicated the changes adequately to the four per cent of ratepayers impacted and council has committed to improving that situation.

My role, and that of all councillors, is to ensure equity in all our decisions and that is why the adjustment was made to some properties within our city boundary.

The media plays an important role in communicating the views of the public and this has been apparent with some residents vocal about the recent changes. The media’s role is equally to ensure accuracy in the coverage. Headlines screaming ‘View Tax’ are inaccurate as the basis of this adjustment has nothing to do with a view out of a window.

Going forward, we will continue to deliver the services people expect, at a price we can all afford, in an equitable and fair manner.

TOM TATE IS THE GOLD COAST MAYOR