11:08a.m. 24th July 2008

| By Sam Benger

Kureelpa's Colin Baber, 73, is shocked that rates for his Mapleton rental property have gone up 31%. Photo: Brett Wortman /177214

Some rental property owners have been hit with rates hikes of up to 30%, almost double the average predicted by the council.

Landlords across the Coast will receive their rates notices this week, and some can expect a nasty surprise when they see how much they have to pay.

Colin Baber, who lives at Kureelpa, west of Nambour, was shocked when he opened his rates notice this week.

The charge on his investment property, just down the road at Mapleton, has increased by 31%, meaning he will have to pay an extra $232 a year.

Mr Baber said he had owned the property since 1995 and was paying half-yearly rates of $374.50. That figure has risen to $490.50.

He said he was most concerned about the impact it would have on renters.

“I rent it out to an elderly couple who have been there since 1999 and I have just put the rent up considerably, so I’m reluctant to do it again. But all these little things just keep mounting up and it’s hard all round,” he said.

He said the weekly rent at his property was $320 and although he would not be raising the rent at this stage, the rate hikes had made him think about selling.

“If I sold it, I’d get more for it than what I do in rent and I wouldn’t have the rates to worry about, but I don’t want to put my tenants out because I don’t know where else they’d go.”

Mr Baber said he was expecting higher rates this year, as a result of the council budget, but did not expect them to go up by so much.

“I didn’t think it would be that much, I thought about 10% would’ve been enough,” he said.

Division 10 councillor Paul Tatton said a 30% rates hike was “at the higher end of the scale”.

“There may be some instances where rates have gone up because of the unimproved capital value, but I think the general community will find that ... the rates increase for the average person will be manageable,” he said.

He admitted the rises would affect renters, but said landlords should not raise rents by more than the increase.

“Landlords also need to remember that their rental properties are a tax deduction,” he said.

Mr Tatton said the rates rise was the result of “exorbitant” costs associated with amalgamation, including the fact the council was underpaid $26 million for its water assets.

The council had tried to keep the rates rise as low as possible, he said.

How much have your rates increased by under the new council? Do you think the rise is fair?