Major municipalities in South Africa have unveiled their proposed tariff increases for the 2024/25 financial year, with eThekwini residents facing the sharpest hikes once again.
The draft budget proposals for the upcoming financial year have been presented by the country's major metros.
While some adjustments are in line with inflation, others entail significant tariff increases. Municipal mayors attribute these hikes to above-inflation escalations from Eskom, water boards, and salary adjustments.
eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality residents are particularly affected, facing the second-highest property rates among major metros, along with substantial tariff increases. This could have significant financial implications for them.
The cent-in-rand rate, a statutory formula for property rates calculation, reveals that Buffalo City in the Eastern Cape levies the highest rates, adjusted for inflation.
However, eThekwini follows closely with rates well above inflation, causing concern.
These proposed increases have sparked frustration among Durban residents, already grappling with service delivery challenges. Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda acknowledges the substantial increases but attributes them to the current economic climate.
However, the eThekwini Ratepayers’ and Residents’ Association (ERRA) urges residents to oppose the increases due to poor services and failing infrastructure.
In contrast, Cape Town offers the lowest property rates among metros for both residents and businesses in the upcoming financial year.
Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis invites property owners to Cape Town for competitive rates, reliable services, advanced load-shedding mitigation plans, and infrastructure.
Cape Town's proposed property rate increase of 5.7% and other service adjustments aim to sustain rates-funded services, invest in infrastructure and generators for load-shedding mitigation, service informal settlements, provide rebates to vulnerable groups, enhance safety measures, and maintain infrastructure.
These are the proposed property rates for the 2024/25 financial year, effective from July 1, 2024. (Note: Nelson Mandela Bay's formulas were unavailable at the time of writing.)
Buffalo City - 5.1%
eThekwini - 7.8%
Tshwane - 5.0%
Ekurhuleni - 4.9%
Mangaung - 6.3%
City of Joburg - 4.8%
City of Cape Town - 5.7%
Hill-Lewis has also announced that Cape Town will outpace all other cities on infrastructure investments, with 130 000 construction-related jobs set to be created in the metro over three years.
The City plans to invest more in infrastructure than all three Gauteng metros combined over the coming three-year Medium-Term Revenue Expenditure Framework (MTREF), based on an analysis of the 2024/25 draft budgets tabled by each metro.
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