33 properties sold in Australia over unpaid local charges
In Mount Isa, Australia, the city council sold at auction all 33 properties listed due to owners’ unpaid local charges. The total value of the sales amounted to A$4.95 million, ABC News Australia reports.
Among the sold properties were 25 houses owned by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporation for Welfare Services (ATSICFWS). The corporation had accumulated nearly A$1 million in unpaid local charges. About 50 people lived in 15 of the houses, while another 10 properties were vacant.
The future of tenants
According to the source, residents of the occupied houses continued to pay rent to the corporation and may not have known about its financial problems. Their ability to remain in their homes will now depend on arrangements with the new owners under Queensland tenancy rules.
Kelvin Teaterley, the city council’s director of corporate services, said that buyers included investors and people planning to live in the purchased properties themselves. About 60% of successful buyers in the first part of the auctions were local, while others came from Townsville, Brisbane, New South Wales and Victoria. One investor who purchased three properties told the council that he wanted to retain the existing tenants.
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Kerry Major, who has lived in her house since 2017, learned about its sale after a visit from the buyer. After meeting the new owner, she believes she will be able to reach an agreement to continue living there.
Debt recovery
Initially, the sale procedure covered 48 properties, but some owners repaid their debts before the auctions. Ninety-six participants registered for the three-day auctions on the first day, 56 on the second and 75 on the third. All 33 lots reached their reserve price and were sold.
Teaterley estimated that the city council would be able to recover about A$2.2 million. The final amount will depend on expenses for the auction, legal services and debt collection. Queensland legislation allows councils to sell property if local charges have remained unpaid for more than three years. Settlements for the sold properties are expected to be completed during October.
In 2025, the regulator fined ATSICFWS A$15,000 for failing to submit financial reports since 2018.
