Levies

All owners pay a Monthly Levy, which consists of two parts - (i) a ‘Village Levy’, and (ii) ‘Third Party’ Levies.

Village Levy

The ‘village levy’ is a contribution towards the general operating expenses of the estate. This levy is calculated during the annual budget process and implemented at the commencement of each financial year. It is applied to the houses and apartments according to their floor area.

The levy includes a provision for creating a reserve fund for large maintenance or development projects. In addition, a 3.5% levy on the sale price of any unit is also added to this reserve fund and has the effect of helping to stabilise levy increases.

These are the principal benefits covered by the ‘village levy’:

  • Basic health care and maintaining the Healthcare Centre.
  • Security
  • Insurance on all buildings, both private and common property. (Note – this does not include the household contents of your home.)
  • Maintenance of all common property areas and the exterior (only) of private buildings.
  • Urgent all-hours attention to most emergencies inside units, such as burst water pipes, no electricity, fire alarm etc. (This is handled by the in-house maintenance team during working hours, and by security after hours.)
  • All water used.
  • Mowing private lawns.
  • Maintaining the communal gardens.
  • Refuse & recycling collection.
  • Electricity used in communal facilities and for street lighting.
  • Delivery of incoming postal to each unit’s post box.
  • Security.

Third Party Levies

These are separate from the village levy, but are included on the same monthly statement, each as a separate item:

  • Kitchen levy: this ensures the sustainability of the kitchen operation and covers its fixed costs. Offset against the levy, each household is entitled to free meals up to the same value as the levy.
  • Municipal Sanitation levy and Municipal “water on demand” levy:  these are billed by the City of Johannesburg directly to the HOA, which then apportions them per unit.
  • CSOS levy: (Community Schemes Ombud Service) This is a statutory levy that the Village pays on behalf of owners.
  • Telephone line rental: This covers the maintenance cost of the internal telephone system infrastructure.  In addition to the above items the monthly statement will include any additional charges e.g. renewal of water filters, replacement of smoke alarm batteries, etc.
New Bridge and willows

Items not included in the Monthly Levy:

  • Household electricity consumed. Each unit is fitted with a pre-paid meter. Electricity vouchers can be bought at reception, from major retailers, and via the internet by registering with our service provider.
  • Telephone calls to outside the village. Calls are charged somewhat below the Telkom rate. This is a prepaid service: airtime can be purchased from reception. Dial 0999# to hear a recording of your current airtime balance. (Calls within the village are free).
  • Insurance on the contents of your home.
  • Cost of maintaining the hot water system. (This is a standard exclusion in the Sectional Title Act).
  • Maintenance/repair work inside units. A list of approved contractors is available to handle this work at the owner’s cost.
  • Meals in excess of the “free” meal allowance (‘Kitchen levy’).