eThekwini Rates Clearance Shambles

eThekwini Municipality has moved from bad to worse with regards to rates clearance certificates. The latest response from council to our concerns being:

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Dear Mark

Your Mail of the 13th has reference.

Firstly please accept our apology for not issuing RCC's within the initial 10day period.

We have high volumes and internal matters to deal with to ensure that the figures provided does not compromise Council or the purchaser.

I note your analysis of our problem but I can assure you that the process highlighted by yourself is not so easy and simple as set out in your mail, if it was that simple without any manual interaction it would have been possible, but we have to make sure that all debt are called for, including debt where services were consumed without the owner or the tenant signing for the consumption.

We are looking in improving by re-engineering some of the processes and this should be completed within the next three months this includes the appointment of further staff.

If you encourage your applicants to contact the City directly it will not improve the process but rather slow it down.

Hope you will understand and I can assure you, the city is committed to a better service.

Regards

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Peet Du Plessis

Head: Revenue Management

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Rest assured, Mc Naught and Company are not leaving the matter there and are actively pursuing the matter with council further to try and reach a workable solution that will not have an incredibly negative impact on the entire Greater Durban property market.

Watch this space for updates.