The appellant was assessed to the poor-rate as owner of a small house let by the week to artisans, the landlord paying all outgoings. On appeal against the rate to quarter sessions the appellant claimed that in arriving at the gross estimated rental deductions should be made in respect of losses by reason of the house frequently remaining unlet and void for some time, and by reason of losses of rent through inability of tenants to pay, and in respect of the necessary cost of collection of the rent actually received. The recorder found that it was practically impossible to let the house on any other terms than those on which the appellant let it; that owing to voids and losses of rent the landlord received on an annual average 5 per cent, less than the aggregate of the weekly rents, and had to pay 5 per cent, as the cost of collecting the rents actually received; but he also found that, assuming a tenant from year to year could be obtained, the house could be reasonably let for a sum representing fifty-two times the weekly rent, the landlord paying all usual tenants’ rates and taxes and the water-rate.
Held: That the gross estimated rental ought to be fixed by ascertaining the
rent at which the house might reasonably be expected to let to a tenant in actual occupation from year to year free of the various tenant’s payments specified in 6 and 7 Wm. 4, c, 96, s. 1; and not by assuming a hypothetical tenant who did not himself occupy the house, but sublet it to weekly tenants, and therefore that the deductions claimed in respect of voids, losses of rent, and cost of
collection ought not to be made.
Citations:
(1888) 22 QBD 211, 1888] UKLawRpKQB 177
Links:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Telereal Trillium v Hewitt (Valuation Officer) SC 15-May-2019
The court considered correct approach to determination of the rateable value of an office building, in circumstances where the evidence showed at the relevant time a general demand in the area for comparable office buildings, but no actual tenant . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Rating
Updated: 04 February 2022; Ref: scu.671819