The number of objections to the WOZ value of homes in the municipality of Groningen has reached a record high. The Northern Tax Office (NBK) received 9059 objections this year. It doesn’t stop there.
An increasing number of homeowners are protesting against the increase in the WOZ value. This year, the WOZ value or house value, which is also used to determine property tax, rose on average by about 17 percent in the Netherlands. In the municipality of Groningen, the average was even higher. NBK already warned in 2022 for an average increase of 18.8 percent, with outliers towards forty percent.
Strong rise
The Northern Tax Office determines the WOZ value in the municipalities of Groningen, Noordenveld and Eemsdelta. So far, 10,653 objections have been received in these three municipalities. With 9059 objections, the municipality of Groningen stands out. In particular, the NBK in Groningen received 3186 objections in 2022. The year before there were 3180.
This number is expected to reach 10,000 in the provincial capital alone by 2023. “This may be due to the attacks that we have imposed or will impose later. As a result, the objections also come in later. The increase in the number of objections is a national trend,” says NBK spokeswoman Linda van Leeuwen.
Falling house prices?
Quite a few homeowners think the increase is unjustified, because house prices are showing a downward trend under the pressure of interest rate rises. However, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), the price development of existing owner-occupied homes is delayed by a year.
The 2023 WOZ value is based on sales prices of comparable homes from a year earlier. Homes in 2023 are valued at the value of 1 January 2022. On that date, sales prices were 20 percent higher than a year earlier.
Basis for taxation
The WOZ value serves as the basis for a number of taxes. Think of the municipal property tax (OZB), sewage and water care levy and commuter tax, but also national taxes such as the notional rental value and inheritance tax. The higher the WOZ value of a home, the more property tax the municipality can collect. The property tax is one of the most important sources of income for municipalities.
If the objections are not dealt with within six months, major problems can arise. “Exceeding legal terms affects our customers,” says Van Leeuwen. The WOZ value is used by the tax authorities and influences the annual assessment. “We will start a new round of attacks in 2024. Then you want to have completed the previous year. To prevent major problems at the end of this year, we must take drastic measures.”
Temporary deployment of students
The NBK asks employees to work overtime. In addition, the staff of other teams are involved in handling the objections. ,,It is all hands on deck”, confirms Van Leeuwen. The NBK approaches universities of applied sciences in Groningen to offer students a temporary job in addition to their studies. The NBK is also trying to hire additional property appraisers. To save time, hearings of private homeowners and objectors are taking place by phone and in online sessions.
‘No cure no pay’ agencies
Of the 10,653 objections, 6,466 were submitted by the so-called ‘no cure no pay’ agencies. These are commercial agencies that represent the interests of the owners. In the event of a successful appeal procedure, they will receive compensation. If an objection is successful, municipalities must pay a court fee. That money goes to the ncnp agencies, which earn their living from it. Municipalities indicate that the costs of WOZ objection procedures are increasing.
This month, a subdistrict court judge in Utrecht refused to award the legal costs. Although it concerned an appeal against a traffic violation, his argument boiled down to the fact that the agency’s effort was too small to pay it. Standard forms were used. It remains to be seen whether this ruling will affect objection procedures against the WOZ value. ,,We do not know the verdict, but we are not anticipating it yet”, said Van Leeuwen.