A comparison of local council rates and charges plus water service charges in south east Queensland shows that a typical Redland City homeowner will pay the most in 2022/23.
This comparison uses the median residential land value for each local government area as the basis for calculating the general rates payable by a typical home owner in each city or region.
Some local councils e.g. Brisbane and Logan offer discounts for prompt payment of rates and charges, so these discounts are taken into account.
Local councils such as Redland City and Logan City are also water service providers while other councils such as Brisbane and Moreton Region have water services provided by a water services utility.
Water and sewerage charges can vary according to the volume of water used in a year so for this comparison it is assumed that 180 kilolitres (kL) per year is used in each case.
The rates and water bills will include some charges that are controlled by the State Government namely the bulk water charge and the Emergency Management Levy.
These charges are now consistent across most south east Queensland local government areas, except:
- Toowoomba is not connected to the SEQ water grid so bulk water charges don’t apply.
- In smaller local government areas with fewer emergency service facilities (Scenic Rim, Somerset and Lockyer Valley) the Emergency Management Levy is lower.
Comparison of rates and charges
Annual budgets are now available for 11 of the 12 local government areas in south east Queensland. The Lockyer Valley Regional Council will have its budget meeting on 20 July 2022.
The table below shows a more detailed comparison of rates and charges for just four local government authorities: Brisbane City, Moreton Bay Region, Logan City and Redland City. In this comparison the rates and charges are those that apply for a property on the mainland.
Rates and charges for 2022/23
| Local Government Area | Brisbane | Moreton Bay | Logan | Redlands |
| Local council | BCC | MBRC | LCC | RCC |
| Median land value | $550,000 | $320,000 | $270,000 | $375,000 |
| General Rates | $1,279 | $1,140 | $1,010 | $1,318 |
| Wheelie bins 240L Red & 240L Yellow | $382 | $268 | $303 | $491 |
| Other charges | $108 | $100 | $501 | $217 |
| Total rates and charges | $1,769 | $1,508 | $1,814 | $2,027 |
| Discount for prompt payment | $60 | $0 | $91 | $0 |
| Total rates and charges with discount | $1,709 | $1,508 | $1,723 | $2,027 |
| Water service provider | QUU | UnityWater | LCC | RCC |
| Assumed water use kL/year | 180 | 180 | 180 | 180 |
| Water excluding Bulk Water | $399 | $439 | $486 | $417 |
| Sewerage | $581 | $744 | $712 | $785 |
| Total water & sewerage $/year | $981 | $1,183 | $1,198 | $1,202 |
| Council rates & water services $/year excluding State Government charges | $2,690 | $2,691 | $2,922 | $3,228 |
| State Government Charges | ||||
| Bulk water | $594 | $594 | $594 | $594 |
| Emergency Management levy | $235 | $235 | $235 | $235 |
| Total State Government charges | $829 | $829 | $829 | $829 |
| Council rates & water services $/year including State Government charges | $3,519 | $3,521 | $3,751 | $4,058 |
| Compared to Brisbane $/year | $0 | + $2 | + $ 232 | +$539 |
| Compared to Brisbane % | – | – | 6.6% | 15.3% |
Redland City Residential land values
We wrote about recent increases in residential land values for Redland City in:
Increases in land valuations for Redland City residential properties
Redlands2030 – 17 July 2022
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4 Comments
I am paying $4,150 and no sewage. Really!
Charges would be acceptable if we received improvements on going and not just at election or rates times.
My rates went up by 12% from the previous bill. I wrote to my Councillor, receiving a generic note in response. Obviously there are a lot of people with huge increases. This is an absurd and unacceptable amount.
Great work guys. Charges for apartments/townhouses would also be interesting. It seems BCC charge the same for a modest townhouse as a median priced house, though apartments would use less in services.hmm