Derelict site levy issued ten years after property was sold
“We don't want vacancies or derelict properties, but if we don't know who owns the property, we cannot collect,” said Cllr Browne.
A property owner in Cashel received a derelict tax order to pay funds despite selling the property ten years previously.
The matter was highlighted by Cllr Liam Browne at a meeting of Tipperary/Cahir/Cashel MD during a discussion on derelict sites in the towns.
Cllr Browne said he received a phone call from somebody in Cashel who was issued with a derelict tax order and informed that he owed money because the property was derelict, but that person had sold that property ten years earlier.
Cllr Browne said problems with collecting such levies existed because Tipperary County Council had no right to go to an auctioneer to ask them about the identity of the buyer of such properties. “We don't want vacancies or derelict properties, but if we don't know who owns the property, we cannot collect,” said Cllr Browne.
A housing official told the meeting that he was aware of the premises inCashel and that discussions had taken place with the original owner of the property.
He told members that if the person who purchased the property does not register the building, it still remains in the original name.
The official said they would reassure the original owner about the matter and would chase up the new owner.
If people who buy properties make no contact with the council, then it makes it easier for the council to move to a Compulsory Purchase Order stage.