How Rates are Calculated
The Council continues to use 'capital value' as the basis for valuing land within the Council area. This is considered the fairest method to calculate rates.
In setting rates, the Council considers its strategic management plan, CityPlan 2030, the current economic climate, legislative changes and the need to maintain and improve physical infrastructure.
The fundamental principle of equity within the community and an assessment of the impact of rates are also considered.
Annual Business Plan 2026–2027 – Summary
The Annual Business Plan Summary explains how rates are calculated and provides a breakdown of where your rates go.
Download Annual Business Plan Summary
You can also visit the Annual Business Plan webpage to download the full document, which includes the Long-term Financial Plan Update.
How rates are calculated
As rates are in effect a property tax, it means the higher the value of your property, the more you are likely to contribute to the amount raised by the Council in the form of rates.
The minimum any ratepayer can contribute is $1,386 per annum. This ensures all ratepayers contribute towards the provision of basic services at a reasonable level.
The 'rate-in-the-dollar' is a mechanism used by councils to determine what rate will be charged to ratepayers across the community. Although this mechanism has its limitations, it does not consider individual circumstances such as the capacity to pay etc., however it is currently the fairest way to calculate rates.
The graphic below explains how Council rates are calculated in three steps.
How rates are calculated graphic:
How your rates are spent
For every $100 spent, we provide the following services:
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Method used to value property
The Council continues to use the capital value of a property as a basis for calculating rates and adopts the capital values which are provided by the Office of the Valuer General. It is considered that this method of valuing land provides the fairest method of distributing the rates across all properties on the following basis:
- Property value is a good indicator of wealth and capital value, which closely approximates the market value of a property and provides the best indicator of the overall property value
- The equity principle of taxation requires that ratepayers of similar wealth pay similar taxes and the ratepayers of greater wealth pay more tax than ratepayers of lesser wealth
- The distribution of property values throughout the City of Norwood Payneham & St Peters is such that only just over one third of residential ratepayers will pay more than the average rate per property.
Contact
Council's Rates Officer
T: 08 8366 4554
E: rates@npsp.sa.gov.au
