Calculation of Rates

Learn more about how rates are calculated.

Valuations impacting on rates in 2023

Each year your property is valued by the Valuer-General Victoria to determine the Capital Improved Value. This value is used to work out your rates and land tax. Council is not involved in setting your property’s valuation.

The amount of rates you pay each year is influenced by changes in the value of your property and the type of property you own.

A range of factors, including a lack of housing availability, increased demand from people relocating to rural areas and a shift to remote working has impacted property prices across the Alpine Shire specifically, and regional Victoria in general.

We calculate your rates by multiplying the Capital Improved Value (CIV) by the applicable rate in the dollar that is set each year by Council as part of the budget process.

Council adopted a 3.5% rate increase in the 2023/24 budget. Property owners who have experienced a large increase in the value of their property will likely see that the increase in their rates on the previous year is higher than 3.5%. 

Property owners whose property has increased at a lower rate will likely see an increase in their rates of less than 3.5%, or might even see a reduction in their rates compared to last year.

Among the areas of strong growth (over 25% CIV change) are Bright, Porepunkah and Tawonga South residential properties. 

Rural residential properties in the Ovens and Kiewa valleys have also experienced an increase in their CIV, between 25-45%.

A range of information is used by the Valuer-General to calculate property values, including analysing nearby property sales and rents, and looking at the features of a property. Data about a property is collected from inspections, building and planning permits and other public sources.

We understand increasing rates will place financial pressure on community members in an environment where the cost of living is rising.

Help is available if you need it. Please contact Council on 5755 0555 for a confidential discussion about how we can support you.

This table provides an example of the impact of property values on the rates you will pay:

% Valuation Change from 2022 to 2023

2023-2024 Corresponding Valuation $

Valuation change -/+

Total Valuation $ % Total Valuation Old rate New rate

Rate change %

Decrease of 10%

$500,000

-50,000

$450,000 -10.0%

$1375

$1011

-26.49%

No change

$500,000

0

$500,000 0.0%

$1375

$1123

-18.33%

Increase of 10%

$500,000

+50,000

$500,000 10.0%

$1375

$1235

-10.16%

Increase of 35%

$500,000

+175,000

$675,000 35.0%

$1375

$1516

10.26%

Increase of 40%

$500,000

+200,000

$700,000 40.0% $1375 $1572

14.34%

Council has a Revenue and Rating Plan that establishes the revenue raising framework within which the Council proposes to calculate rates and charges.

The plan sets out decisions that Council has made in relation to rating options available to it under the Local Government Act 1989 to ensure fair and equitable distribution of rates across property owners.  

The plan does not set revenue targets for Council, rather it outlines the strategic framework that inform how Council will go about calculation and collecting it’s revenue, including rate policies.  A copy of the plan can be viewed here.

Rating policies also form part of Council’s annual budget and these can be found in Section 4 of Council's Annual Budget.

There are three rating categories, which are:

  • General rate
  • Farm rate, a lower rate set at 73% of the general rate and charged on properties that qualify under Council’s farm rate policy
  • Commercial/Industrial rate, a higher rate set at 143% of the general rate and charged on properties that fall under Council’s Commercial/Industrial rate policy

All properties in Victoria are now valued annually, by Valuer General Victoria.

The three values shown on your notice are:

1. Capital Improved Value (CIV)

  • Includes any improvements like houses, sheds, swimming pools, fences, orchards and pergolas.
  • Includes the value of the land (shown on the rate notice as site value).

2. Site Value (SV)

The value of the land only. It is included in the Capital Improved Value (CIV). You do not add the two together.

3. Net Annual Value (NAV)

The amount in rent that could reasonably be received from the property over 12 months. It is not used for the calculation of rates.

Dinner Plain Rates

A Dinner Plain Special Rate is applied to properties that fall under the special rate definition, in addition to the general rate.  It is applied at a higher rate of 43% of the general rate, in the same way the commercial/industrial special rate is applied elsewhere in the Shire.

The Special Rate offsets the costs of service delivery at Dinner Plain, including roadway snow clearing, winter bus service, cross country trail grooming, marketing and events and cable television maintenance.

Rate Strategy and Policies

Council's Rating Strategy and policies are part of the budget document.

The purpose of the Rating Strategy is to identify the fairest and most equitable method of distributing rates across the Alpine Shire. The rating structure includes a general rate, differential rates and a special rate.

The general rate is the cornerstone of Council's rating stucture, and is applied to every property unless the property falls into a specific differential rate category.

The differential rate policies are:

  • Farm Rate Policy - this is a reduced rate equal to 73% of the general rate, applicable to property that satisfies the criteria.
  • Commercial/Industrial Rate Policy – this rate is equal to 143% of the general rate, applicable to property that satisfies the criteria

The strategy and policies are set out in Section 4 of Council's Annual Budget.

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