Sapoa warns Mangaung: Don’t link tariffs to property value

The South African Property Owners’ Association (Sapoa) has raised concerns over the Mangaung metro’s plans to change the structure of its waste removal tariffs for non-residential customers and link it to the value of their property.

This follows Sapoa, which represents commercial property owners countrywide, having successfully challenged the City of Cape Town’s city-wide cleaning levy and fixed charges for water and sanitation for 2026/27, which were structured in a similar fashion.

The Western Cape High Court recently declared this unlawful and set the tariffs side.

The City of Cape Town has until Friday to indicate whether it will try to appeal the ruling or adjust its budget, which must be implemented on 1 July. The municipality has so far played its cards close to its chest, saying it is weighing its options.

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Mangaung states in its waste management tariff document, published as part of the draft budget, that business and commercial properties, industrial and mining properties, as well as those owned by organs of state and used for public service purposes, “shall be charged based on market value as opposed to a single levy for all market values”.

According to the metro, the “current tariff was not cost-reflective and therefore the costs associated with the delivery of the service was not fully recovered.

“[The] tariff structure has been changed to accommodate different market values.”

This means that owners who currently pay R407.20 per month for having their solid waste removed once a week could now pay much more, as illustrated in the table below:

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Source: Mangaung metro

Ongoing service delivery issues

Sapoa CEO Neil Gopal said in a notice to members that the organisation has taken part in the legislated public participation process initiated by Mangaung as part of its budgeting process for the new financial year.

“We submitted our written comments to the municipality on Tuesday 28 April 2026.

“We remain particularly concerned about the municipality’s intention to change the basis upon which the refuse removal tariff for non-residential properties is calculated, from the current fixed rate to a tariff linked to property values.

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“We have pointed out to the municipality that tariffs linked to property values have recently been declared unconstitutional and unlawful by the Western Cape High Court in a landmark ruling in the matter brought by Sapoa against the City of Cape Town.

“Despite twice following up with the municipality, no response has been forthcoming from either the officials tasked with considering budget comments, or the municipal manager, who was specifically copied in the correspondence.”

Gopal points out that it is “a well-known fact that there is, at this stage, virtually no operating refuse removal service within Mangaung, and more and more property owners are obliged to make alternative provisions for refuse removal.

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“For the municipality to now introduce an unlawful tariff for a service which is not being effectively rendered simply adds insult to injury for property owners.”

This is echoed by Christo Groenewald, AfriForum’s district coordinator for Bloemfontein.

He says uncollected refuse bags are a familiar scene in Bloemfontein and surrounds. Sometimes it’s because the waste removal trucks have broken down or there is a diesel shortage.

AfriForum has in fact started its own waste removal service to assist residents who fear health risks due to the municipality’s failure.

“We currently have about 300 customers in Bloemfontein and surrounding rural areas, including two schools, guest houses and businesses, some with multiple properties.”

Political and public opposition

He says AfriForum is currently litigating against the metro to have its waste removal clients exempted from municipal fees, which they get no value for. The Democratic Alliance (DA) has also indicated it will oppose the proposed waste removal tariff structure.

Sapoa says a precedent has been set regarding the unlawfulness of tariffs linked to property values. “Should the refuse tariff linked to property values be adopted in the municipality’s final budget, Sapoa will consider its legal options.

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“We remain willing to engage with the municipality in a constructive manner and trust that the municipality will remove these unlawful tariffs from its budget prior to adoption on 1 July 2026.”

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Frans Bothma, the DA spokesperson on finance in Mangaung, says the metro is planning an average increase of 14.96% in water tariffs. This is however unevenly spread.

The fixed charge is set to rise by almost 33% and the tariff for those using six kilolitres or less per month by a whopping 47% per kilolitre.

Property rates tariffs have been reduced by 5%, but the average increase in property values on the new valuation role is 25%. “That may result in an increase of 15% on the rates bill,” he warns.

Ben Espach of Rates Watch says owners of lower-value properties will benefit from Mangaung’s increase in the general rebate from R100 000 to R180 000.

He says according to National Treasury’s guideline, rates bills should not increase by more than CPI. This is often misinterpreted, with municipalities arguing that a reduction in the rates tariff puts them within this guidance.

Taking changes in property valuations into consideration, one must look at the increase in overall revenue from rates to establish whether the guideline has been followed, Espach says.

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