Waste collection fees and other local authority taxes are set to rise sharply this year, according to research by local authority research group Coelo.

Tenants in the 40 biggest local authority areas will pay an average of €363 in taxes this year – a rise of just over 5% on last year – while home owners will pick up an average bill of €734, an increase of 4.3% on 2019. This, says Coelo, is the biggest increase since 2007.

In particular, local council fees for collecting and processing waste are rising sharply, with an average increase of 6%. This is largely due to councils passing on a 14%  increase in government waste taxes to their residents, Coelo, which is part of Groningen University, says.

In addition, property taxes (OZB) which are paid by home owners, will go up by an average of 4%. Property taxes are based on the value of people’s homes.

Despite the average increases, there are sharp variations across the country, Coelo says. For example home owners in Apeldoorn face a 17% rise in local taxes and tenants will have to pay 29% more. In Arnhem, by contrast, local taxes are going down across the board.