To not understand why council tax in London is so cheap

[WhenSheWasBadSheWasHorrid]

This is based on a ridiculously small sample size. My 4 bed house up north costs me £180 a month. Friends 3 bed in London is £90.

Why is it so much cheaper? A few other London base mates reported low council tax rates too (but not that low).

Is London cheaper? Why council tax when everything else is so expensive?

Wandsworth borough council tax is famously low & I think if they tried to put it up there would be an uproar from local residents.

Not really sure what the facilities are like across the whole borough but Putney has a big leisure centre & v smart library, they must have afforded it somehow....

On the other hand I pay a lot more in Lambeth over the border & my local library has been closed for nearly a year after vandalism & no sign of re-opening...

Oh & the council are building themselves smart new offices even though their staff head count is down following redundancies. They need a bigger office for their fewer staff, apparently.

92 a month here in solihull for 3 bed terraced house

We will be back in Wandsworth ( a stones throw away) this automn. Cant wait. 3 bed terrace is just under 700 per year...

PeelingBells Not in my experience.

I go to putney leisure centre. Love it.

Wandsworth has incredibly low rates of council tax.

It's something to do with the introduction of council tax as a replacement for the poll tax. It had set it's poll tax at zero I believe. When the government introduced council tax there was some sort of guarantee that people would not pay more than a certain amount more than they would have with poll tax. Councils were given some sort of relief for this.

So, Wandsworth was able to set the lowest council tax in the country. I don't know if they still get the relief nowadays.

It's because it's a very well run borough and it's a delight to live in. Great recycling, great primary schools (the secondaries are dire though), great libraries, good roads except for the speed bumps, good leisure centres, the one o'clock clubs were fantastic when the dc were smaller.

North London - £135/month for a two bed flat.

There are a lot of high rise properties in Wandsworth, so I expect the number of households putting into the pot means that they still bring in a high amount of revenue.

I have spent the last few days going to houses in SE postcodes and it is very densely populated.

It's a delight to live in for some

I used to live in Barnes, Richmond council and it was £200 a month for a 2 bed flat.

Now living in Kent and pay half that for a property twice the size!

Six bedrooms in Putney works out to about £115pcm.

This thread demonstrates why council tax is such a scandal.

Housing density, for example, a library might serve twice the number if people in London. Also I think the central govt grant is higher.

Labour absolutely HATES Wandsworth council - it really can't stand this living, breathing testament to conservative principles. It has the lowest council tax in the country despite being a not particularly prosperous borough.

You only need to compare Wandsworth to Camden or Lambeth to see the difference that sound management makes.

...e.g. the difference to carers of people with dementia who can't afford for them to have some respite and sit crying into the night with exhaustion for example.

I think that in Poormond, we pay a fortune because of the low number of highrises which means the density is much less, we also pay a packet on behalf of each deer inhabiting the park. We possibly also pay for each deer culled.

I am in west London and am paying £140 for a three bed mid terrace. Reading the figures on here I am quite suprised how much it varies across London

3 bed semi up north is 145 a month, a 2 bed terrace same town 80 a month, oh how I wanted to cry when child 2 was the opposite sex to child 1 meaning we.needed another bedroom.

i used to work for Wandsworth Council
it is a prosperous borough - have you seen the Northcote road recently? even the arse end of Tooting costs £££ to live in.

and the council make it their business to offer minimal services to the vulnerable. i remember one Christmas being told that no more residential placements were to be made until April . these are the sacrifices that are made to maintain the title of Lowest Council Tax.

I would love to work for wandsworth council. I would be a Estate Manager. And send all the Asbos to Isle of Mull.

Do you have the Queen personally emptying your bins or something quint?!

I'm a student, therefore exempt, so it is very cheap

I'm shocked that Richmond is so expensive!

Merton, tiny 2 bed flat, £110 per month. London isn't all cheap.