Homes and land across the Macleay Valley going to a forced auction over unpaid rates

Council posted notice of a resolution in August 2022 that 27 properties would be sold at public auction if outstanding accounts remained unpaid.

Since the original notice, four properties have been removed from the auction list, following payments or further negotiations with the relevant owners.

According to Kempsey Shire Council, their agents have made repeated efforts to contact the owners of the properties to attempt to reach an agreement.

Council partnered with debt recovery company Recoupa to assist the people with outstanding rates.

According to Recoupa CEO Richard McLean, only three properties had dwellings on them and the company was successful in helping two of the three parties to manage their debts.

"There's been a huge effort to try and sort out the last one, but that effort has not yet produced success," he said.

"I don't think we've ever done as much work as we have on that one property, or on any property effort before in NSW."

The properties with outstanding rates will be offered for sale by public auction by Kempsey Stock and Land at 11am on Tuesday November 29 at Kempsey Macleay RSL Club.

Such a sale is strictly regulated by the NSW Government under s713 of the Local Government Act which permits councils to sell properties with outstanding rates balances.

Kempsey Shire Council Director Corporate and Commercial Stephen Mitchell said that the decision to auction off properties was an "option of last resort" after contact with the owners and attempts to reach an agreement failed.

"We don't want to take this step... but sometimes when ratepayers haven't paid their rates it's the process we need to pursue," said Mr Mitchell.

"We go through an extensive process to try and find a solution. All ratepayers are notified of their outstanding rates regularly and we have and will always try and negotiate with the owners."

Council say it remains hopeful that the property owners in question will work with staff and pay their outstanding rates, but will otherwise "reluctantly" go to auction.

"Council can only wear the financial burden for so long, before it begins to have an impact on other ratepayers and residents," said Mr Mitchell.

"We will work until the day of the auction but we have to be fair to all of our ratepayers."

Mr McLean of Recoupa says that council has done everything it can to avoid taking the listings to auction.

"[Council] have gone out of their way. If you wanted to be critical, you'd say they tried too hard too long," he said.

Kempsey Shire Council Director Corporate and Commercial, Stephen Mitchell, said much of the land in question was unused.

"The vast majority of these properties are vacant lots," said Mr Mitchell.

"For those few properties that have buildings, about half have been abandoned or are uninhabitable."

Ben Tyson, Licensee of Kempsey Stock and Land, says that the majority of the properties are forgotten lots and that the auction is a "lot tidy up".

"[The] majority look like lots that solicitors and people have missed in a transfer from years and years ago... or tiny closed roads, little parcels of land," said Mr Tyson.

In some cases where a parcel of land sits alongside or within a current owned property, the owner will choose to pay the unpaid rates of the neighbouring land to have it withdrawn from auction and transferred to their name.

Mr Tyson says that these people may not wish to "run the risk of someone buying land near [them] and putting a caravan on it" and instead choose to pay the outstanding debt.

With days left before the auction Mr McLean believes there may be another property taken off the list. A "bare land" within another farm.

He says "paper roads", a road that was never built but has it's own DPs and titles, happen commonly.

"These roads crisscross NSW and often they are in many dozens or hundreds of titles linked together like a bamboo, and sometimes they remain in the previous owner's name when a property is sold, because in the process of conveyancing they're not noticed," said Mr McLean

"If a farmer sells a farm then the person doing the conveyancing to the purchaser may not realise that there are these tiny lots and tiny titles."

Mr McLean says in these circumstances the most logical thing is for the neighbour to pay the outstanding rates.

The person liable for property rates and debts is the person on title. If that person is deceased and their estate has long been resolved, that debt belongs to the land.

Mr McLaren explains that in these cases the rates are written off at the time of the auction. "When a property is sold at auction, the person who buys it buys with it owing nothing," he said.

For more information read council's notice or call Kempsey Stock and Land on 6562 6600.