The Reval2020 valuations for businesses is now available and it reveals that Non-Domestic rate bills are set to increase for many local traders across Ballymoney.
The Department of Finance (DofF) is encourgaing Business owners to now ‘check their valuation’ and to ‘compare it with similar property types’.
Land and Property Services have been revaluing the business properties throughout Northern Ireland in order that these new values will be used to calculate the rates bills for businesses from April 2020
The DofF has said that the revaluation is to ‘ensure that the rating system stays up-to-date, reflects local economic changes and makes the system fairer by redistributing rate liability fairly across all sectors in line with changes in market rental values’.
The last revaluation process took place in 2015 and these were based on the April 2013 rental values.
As part of the Reval2020 many Ballymoney businesses will see an increase to their Net Annual Values (NAVs) which will have a knock on increase to their business rates bill, putting more pressure on many of the towns independent trades.
Causeway Councils finance committee are due to set rates next months.
The largest increase to a valuation in the town will be to Castle Street car park, which see’s an increase of 100% or £6,300 in monetary value. However Church Street, the other paid car park in the town, rateable value remains unchanged.
While other small businesses as seeing an increase on average of about 20-25%* (some much higher in cases), TESCO will see a reduction in their rates bill after a decrease in their rateable value of -11.5%, reduced from £517,500 to £458,000.
One local business owner told the Ballymoney Bubble that’s its a ‘disgrace that a town of small often family run businesses should see a hike in their rates bill’. The local business owner went on to say:
“It’s SICKENING that the likes of a big chain store like Tesco enjoy a reduction in their rates bill, a company which can well aford to pay extra.
“While us local businesses are set to pay more, more we can little aford to concidering how hard it is to fight for every penny.
“Discracefull!”
Reductions have also been seen in several of the local licensed premisses in the town, with decreases from -21.11% to -37.5% in their valuations including one which has saw no change.
The last five years has seen grown in the town with several new businesses opening or expanding including the recent opening of Home Bargains and current construction of a bigger Lidl store.
But these hikes are likely to wipe out any increase profits that the small met businesses are making.
*The figures used are estimates only and for detailed information, please check the dedicated Reval2020 website.
