Flats or Houses to rent or buy in the City of Westminster

For specific information on this borough, or to contact individual departments please click here to visit their website.

City of Westminster: http://www.westminster.gov.uk

In General:
The London boroughs are administrative centres responsible for collecting local taxes (Council Tax and Business Rates) and then spending the funds received on local services. They are run by Borough Councils who are elected by borough residents on a four year cycle. The totals that they spend will depend on the rates of tax that they levy plus funds allocated from central government and other sources.

While many of the services (schools, roads, planning, rubbish collection and social services) are standard, levels of provision will vary according to the overall political will as expressed by the voters.

Your tax liability (as a resident) will be based on the council tax band of your home. These bands are set by Valuation Officers and there is scope for appeal. The rate bands are then used to determine the amounts of tax levied. So, while the bands will remain largely constant the levels of tax can go up and, in theory, down.

You may claim discounts or exemptions based on your circumstances. For example, as the only adult in a property you can get a 25% reduction on your bill. Other reductions are available for qualifying second adults and Council Tax Benefit claimants.

There is more information available at the HM Customs & Excise website.

Home to London's most famous tourist attractions but also a varied array of property and locations for those who chose to live in the busy heart of the capital. Noise, traffic, pollution and an alarmingly high number of homeless people are a small price to pay for the buzzing shops, pubs, clubs and restaurants that living in central London provides.

Belgravia, Westminster and Pimlico, to the south of Green Park and Mayfair to the east of Hyde Park attract the wealthy, whilst Soho has successfully reinvented itself from seedy backwater to a Mecca for London's trendy set. Marylebone, east of Regents Park and once a traffic clogged main road, has gained a worthy fashionable reputation. To the north, the smart residential areas of Maida Vale, Little Venice and St. John's Wood boast metropolitan and cosmopolitan locations while Kilburn and Paddington to the northeast offer cheaper, less grand properties.