Nine Mid Murray homes to be sold due to failure to pay rates

In a rare occurrence, the Mid Murray Council has decided to sell nine properties due to their owners’ failure to pay rates for more than three years.

While the council’s preference was to work with property owners to reach payment agreements, its efforts over several years had been unsuccessful in these cases, council CEO Ben Scales said.

The sale process will be undertaken under section 184 of the Local Government Act, which allows a council to sell land to recover unpaid rates if the rates have been in arrears for at least three years.

The council hoped to recover a total of $100,400 of unpaid rates.

The properties were expected to be advertised for sale on Monday, with an auction to be held on November 20 at the Mannum Motel.

Mr Scales said every effort had been made to engage with the impacted property owners and negotiate alternative payment options.

“When council began this process in 2023, there were originally 70 properties identified that had unpaid rates totalling $746,000, which had been accrued over periods of between seven and 14 years,” he said.

“We understand that the sale of a property is a significant step – that’s why we have taken a careful, considered and thorough approach and explored all reasonable avenues to secure payment.

“Council has made substantial efforts to engage with impacted landowners through formal debt recovery, written warnings, pre-section 184 notices, notices placed on affected properties, and through providing opportunities for owners to enter into other payment options," he said.

Since those efforts began, payments from 31 properties had been received, and a further 23 owners had entered into arrangements to clear unpaid rates within 18 months.

Payment negotiations were also underway relating to a further seven properties, Mr Scales said.

But the owners of nine more had made no attempt to communicate with the council, or refused to enter into an acceptable repayment plan.

These properties had been served a final notice and would be offered for sale by auction, unless the outstanding amount and all costs were paid on or before November 20.

“Council does not take this step to sell properties to recover unpaid rates lightly,” Mr Scales said.

“However, our community expects us to responsibly manage public funds and ensure we are operating in a financially sustainable way.

“The outstanding debts across the identified properties represent a significant burden on council’s budget, which in turn affects the delivery of essential services and infrastructure across the region.

“Most of our ratepayers do the right thing, but when a small number continually fail to meet their obligations — despite multiple offers of support — it becomes unfair on everyone else.”

It is not the first time a Murraylands council has resorted to selling property to recoup unpaid rates.

The Rural City of Murray Bridge revealed last year they had seized two houses and one vacant lot under the same section of the Local Government Act.

The Mid Murray council last took similar action in 2012-13.

Any resident experiencing difficulty in paying their rates is urged to contact their local council as early as possible to explore flexible payment options or apply for financial hardship assistance.

• Contact Mid Murray Council: Call 8569 0100, email postbox@mid-murray.sa.gov.au or visit the office at 49 Adelaide Road, Mannum.