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Rates on rental properties

Many landlords, owners and tenants are not fully aware of their liability for rate payments on rental properties. Rates for rental properties are governed by different rules from owner-occupied properties.

Who is responsible for rates on a rental property?

In many cases the landlord is responsible for paying the rate bill and may be able to cover the cost of the rates by collecting this money from their tenant(s) depending on the terms of their tenancy agreement.

If you are in any doubt, you should contact Land & Property Services (LPS) Central Landlords team as follows:

The following table gives an indication as to who is responsible, based on capital valuation and frequency of rent payment:

Capital value - shown on bill Frequency of rent payment Who is liable for rates?
£0 - £55,000 Any frequency Owner / landlord
£55,001 - £150,000 Monthly or weekly - less than quarterly Owner / landlord
£55,001 - £150,000 quarterly or longer Occupier / tenant
£150,001 and above Monthly or weekly - less than quarterly Occupier / tenant

You can use the following link to the Land and Property Services (LPS) website to find a capital valuation by inputting the property address and / or postcode.

Allowances on rates for rental properties

If you are responsible for rates on one or more rental properties, you are entitled to an allowance of 7.5 per cent or 12.5 per cent, depending on the type of account you choose:

Regardless of the account, you must pay your rate account in full by 30 September each year. to avail of the allowance.

House in Multiple Occupation (HMO)

A House in Multiple Occupation is defined as a property which is let to three or more tenants who come from two or more different families. An example of this would be a house let out to a number of students.

The owner / landlord is responsible for the collection and payment of rates for HMOs regardless of capital value or frequency of rent payment.

Landlords whose tenants receive help with rates

If you have tenants who receive help with their rates from the Northern Ireland Housing Executive (NIHE), it may  be in your best interests to request that any payments be made directly to you as the owner or landlord. This is because NIHE pays in arrears and these payments do not keep the rate account up to date as required by LPS.

Rating of empty homes from October 2011

With the introduction of Rating of Empty Homes, the same level of rates are due on all domestic properties whether occupied or empty. There are some exclusions that may apply, and you can find out more about these exclusions in the link below:

How are rental properties affected?

All empty properties will be charged rates regardless of whether or not they are in the rental sector. There are alternative payment provisions available to landlords depending on the type of rate account that applies to their property.

If you require further information you can contact the LPS Central Landlords Team:

More useful links