Overview

The Objection Procedure and Your Valuation – Cape Town GV2025

Historically, until the promulgation of the Municipal Property Rates Act 6 of 2004 (MPRA), promulgated in 2004, the nuts and bolts of municipal property valuation was spelt out in various Property Valuation Ordinances. These Valuation Ordinances prevailed in the old four provinces, prior to their redefinition in 1994 to include the former homelands into nine new provinces, each with its own defined valuation methodology.

The Municipal Property Rates Act 6 of South Africa 2004 (MPRA) was promulgated on the 11^th May 2004 and became operative on 2 July 2005 (RSA, 2004). This legislation repealed all the existing Provincial Valuation Ordinances that had prevailed in South Africa and introduced for the first time the principle that all property to be valued on the basis of the market value and reflected as a single value only, i.e. the improved capital value was now to be determined. This also created opportunity to develop mass valuation systems (section 45(3) of the MPRA) on a national basis.

The market value of a property is now standardised as the national basis for performing property valuations for municipal valuations and is used for determining the rates and taxes payable on the property. This also ensures uniformity and that properties should be valued at 100% of market value which in fact will contribute to the transparency and acceptance of the tax by the taxpayer  Based on the local authority’s state of readiness a municipality should, within a four-year period, determine when it should implement a general valuation.

The City of Cape Town General Valuations have taken place in 2009, 2012, 2015, 2018 with the last General Valuation being GV2022 (effective on property values 1 July 2018) and more recently, the City of Cape Town General Valuation 2025 (GV2025), which will be based on property values on 1 July 2022 with the rates implementation as at 1 July 2023.

In terms of the MPRA a General Valuation must “be made of all properties” within the municipality. Section 229 of the Constitution provides that a municipality, in accordance with Section 4 (1) (c) of the Municipal Systems Act, Act 32 of 2000 has the right to finance the affairs of the municipality by imposing, inter alia, rates on property. In terms of Section 2 (1) of the MPRA a metropolitan or local municipality may levy a rate on property in its area in accordance with the other provisions of the Municipal Property Rates Act 2004.

The MPRA superseded the existing provision Section 51 of the Sectional Title Act (RSA, 1986) and introduced for the first time a provision for sectional title units to be valued individually and not as a whole building (Section 47 of the MPRA). This legislation also made way for owners of all Sectional Title properties to object to their municipal valuation of the section if it is not market related (Section 50 of MPRA). Sectional title properties are now rated on the same basis as all other single property entities.

In terms of Section 46 of the MPRA the “market value of a property is the amount the property would have realised if sold on the date of valuation in the open market by a willing seller to a willing buyer”. In terms of Section 45 of the MPRA it is stated that the property is to be valued “…in accordance with generally recognised valuation practices, methods and standards …” and although inspection of the property to be valued is optional …”,  “comparative, analytical and other systems or techniques may be used, including aerial photography and computer-assisted mass appraisal systems or techniques, taking into account changes in technology and valuation systems and techniques”.

Property Owners in Cape Town will have the opportunity to object and lodge their valuations between MID February 2026 and 30 April 2026.

See:-

Cape Town homeowners, you have 60 days to object to your new municipal valuation 
https://www.appraise.co.za/cape-town-homeowners-you-have-60-days-to-object-to-your-new-municipal-valuation/

Margolius, J. 2012. A critical review of the valuation processes of petrol filling stations in terms of the Municipal Property Rates Act 2004. University of Cape Town (https://open.uct.ac.za/handle/11427/16912?show=full)