The Tshwane Metro has defended its decision to implement a 5% property rate increase for the 2026/27 financial year, saying the adjustment is necessary to maintain infrastructure and ensure the municipality remains financially sustainable.

However, opposition parties have criticised the increase, arguing it places an additional burden on residents already grappling with rising living costs and noting the impact of last year’s controversial property revaluation process.

Property rates across all categories increased by 5% from July 1.

According to mayoral spokesperson Samkelo Mgobozi, the municipality carefully considered affordability when compiling the budget.

“The city’s 2026/27 budget seeks to strike a careful balance between protecting residents from the rising cost of living and ensuring the long-term financial sustainability of the municipality.

“Every effort has been made to keep tariff increases as affordable as possible while recognising that the city has a responsibility to maintain infrastructure, protect essential services and invest in the continued functioning of the capital city,” said Mgobozi.

He said property rates remain one of the metro’s most important sources of income and are essential for funding municipal services residents rely on daily.

Mgobozi explained that the additional revenue generated by the increase would be used to maintain and renew municipal infrastructure, while supporting service delivery across the metro.

He estimated that the increase will generate about R600-million in additional revenue during the 2026/27 financial year.

“The property rates help fund road maintenance, parks, libraries, clinics, emergency services, community facilities and other municipal infrastructure,” said Mgobozi.

Mgobozi stressed that it had attempted to limit the financial burden on households despite facing rising operational costs.

“The city appreciates that households and businesses continue to face financial pressure. Every effort was made to keep tariff increases as affordable as possible while ensuring that the city remains financially sustainable,” said Mgobozi.

He added that many of the city’s own costs, including bulk electricity purchases, bulk water, labour and infrastructure maintenance, continue to rise above inflation.

Mgobozi said qualifying residential property owners would continue receiving the first R250 000 of their property’s value free of rates, while registered indigent households remain protected under the city’s indigent policy.

He also provided examples of the impact of the increase on homeowners.

“A residential property valued at R500 000 will see its monthly rates bill increase from R244.17 to R256.46, representing an increase of R12.29 per month,

“For a home valued at R1-million, the monthly rates account will rise from R732.50 to R769.38, an increase of R36.88 per month.”

Despite these assurances, opposition parties have strongly criticised the increase.

DA Ward 42 councillor Shane Maas said the increase follows last year’s municipal valuation roll, which significantly increased the value of many properties across Tshwane.

He said the metro benefited tremendously upon the conclusion of that valuation process, with rates for many consumers going up by hundreds of percent.

“Increasing the tariffs on top of that is a form of double-dipping that is unconscionable.

“Consumers are seriously struggling with across-the-board increases on almost every living expense,” he said.

Maas confirmed that the DA voted against the metro’s budget and Medium-Term Revenue and Expenditure Framework during the council meeting.

He said, unfortunately, the ANC/EFF/ActionSA coalition was not swayed and voted to approve the budget with their majority of 111 votes to the opposition’s 84 votes.

Maas argued that instead of increasing rates, the city should focus on collecting outstanding debt.

“The city’s debtor’s book has ballooned to approximately R32-billion, increasing by R12-billion in just one year. Collecting what is owed by defaulting entities should be the priority, rather than squeezing struggling households,” Maas said.

He also criticised what he described as unrealistic revenue projections and rising salary costs within the municipality.

Ward 47 councillor Lida Erasmus echoed those concerns, saying the DA had proposed alternative measures to ease financial pressure on residents.

“The DA voted against the budget. The current administration is not prioritising service delivery to residents,” she said.

Erasmus said the party proposed increasing the residential rates exemption from R250 000 to R450 000.

She added that this would have provided much-needed financial relief to residents and would have been fair and in line with other municipalities.

“The DA remains committed to governing in a manner that offers value for money to ratepayers.”

Freedom From Plus caucus leader Grandi Theunissen confirmed that his party opposed the budget.

He said the party’s concerns centred on the accuracy of the municipal valuation process and what it believes are unrealistic assumptions underpinning the metro’s finances.

“We voted against the budget. We are not in favour of the property valuations because we believe the valuation process was compromised,” said Theunissen.

He claimed numerous property owners had submitted objections after discovering inconsistencies between the values of similar neighbouring properties.

Theunissen also questioned whether the municipality’s budget is financially sustainable.

“The city is currently collecting around 82% to 83% of the revenue it budgets for, but it needs to collect more than 92% to make the numbers work. There is a huge gap between projected income and actual income,” he said.

He further criticised rising employee costs and warned that the municipality could face increasing financial pressure if spending is not brought under control.

Despite the criticism, the metro maintains that the approved rate increase is necessary to protect essential municipal services and ensure infrastructure can continue to be maintained and renewed for future generations.

Do you have more information about the story?

Please send us an email to bennittb@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.

For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites: Rekord East

For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram or TikTok or WhatsApp Channel