Rates

Rates pay for the maintenance and development of the District’s infrastructure and community facilities, the cost of providing services like the library and Civil Defence and the general running of Council.

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Understanding your rates 

If you own a property or a business in Kaikōura then you will have to pay rates as a contribution to the services and facilities available to you. Council sets rates annually around the end of June through the Annual Plan or Long Term Plan process. The rating year runs from 1 July until 30 June.   

There are rules around setting rates which Council must follow and these are set out in the Local Government Act and the Local Government (Rating) Act and all Councils set their rates differently depending on the wants and needs of the communities within the district or city.

Different types of rates

The Uniform Annual Charge – a fixed amount charged to all rating units (or separately used or inhabited part of a rating unit). This is not affected by the capital value of a property. This ‘flat fee’ covers things Council believes all ratepayers benefit from equally such as the general operations of Council including governance (Mayor and Councillors), library services, sports fields, playgrounds, cemetery, walkways, public halls, civil defence and waste management.

General Rate – an amount you pay based on cents in the dollar per dollar of the rateable capital value of your property that pays for the general operations of Council. The rate includes a differential, so that rural and semi-rural ratepayers pay slightly less than urban. This includes community services, environmental planning, planning, building control, dog control, community facilities, general parks and reserves, a portion of public toilets and traffic control.

Targeted rates - rates that are charged to pay for specific things.  These are often charged to a selection of properties and the amount charged will vary depending on the rating area, location and other aspects of the property.

Differentials –a way of splitting the cost of some of our rates/charges across our rating areas to make sure that different areas pay different amounts. For example for a differential of 1 urban:0.5 semi-rural : 0.25 rural, urban properties pay twice as much per dollar of capital value than semi-rural properties do, and four times as much per dollar of capital value than rural properties do.

Rating areas

Kaikoura has three rating areas; urban, semi-rural and rural. Properties are allocated to an area based on how close they are to urban services. The size or value of individual properties does not determine which rating area they fall into. The different areas pay different amounts for certain targeted rates to help spread costs as fairly as possible. Commercial properties (those used exclusively or primarily for business purposes) also pay specific rates. 

This accounts for the fact that properties closer to town generally benefit more from certain urban-type services, properties on the outskirts of the township benefit to a lesser extent, and properties further away from the town benefit least of all.

rating areas

You can find out more about targeted rates, differentials and rating areas in our Annual Plan 

Look up your rates

The Rating Information Database contains a record of all information required for setting and assessing rates.

The Rating Information Database for the Kaikōura District Council and Environment Canterbury (Kaikōura District properties only) may be inspected without fee at the Council’s reception, Level 2, 96 West End, Kaikōura between the hours of 8.00am to 4.30pm, Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays. You can also access it by checking under 'look up your rates' below. 

You can also look up your rates online using the property address or VG number. Lookup your Rates here

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When are my rates due?

Rates are broken down into four equal installments and invoiced quarterly. The last day for payment of each installment is shown below;

Instalment 1:     20 September

Instalment 2:     20 December

Instalment 3:     20 March

Instalment 4:     20 June.

If you don’t pay your rates installment on time you will receive a penalty of 10%. To help avoid penalties we recommend setting up a direct debit or automatic payment for your rates. There are several payment options including fortnightly or monthly - see below for more information. 

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Pay your rates

Although the rates invoices are sent quarterly, you are welcome to pay fortnightly or monthly if that works better for you. You can choose from the following payment options:

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Rates rebates

What is it?

To assist people on low incomes with housing costs, central government offers rates rebates if you meet certain requirements. The paperwork is done by Council and central government pays the money onto the rate account.

Council then deducts the amount of your rebate from your rates bill, or, if you've already paid your rates in full we'll give you a refund.

How much you can claim depends on: how much your rates are — this includes local, regional and water rates, your income, and, whether you have any dependants, such as children, living with you.

If your gross (before tax) income is $24,790 or less you can often claim the full amount The most you can get is $620 for the current year. If your income is higher you may still be able to get all or part of the rebate depending on: how much your rates are, and how many children or other dependants are in your household.

If you have dependants, your income can be $500 more for each one. For example, if you have 2 children, then you would still be able to get the full rebate of $620 if your income is less than or equal to $25,790.

You can read more about the rebates, and find an application form here Department of Internal Affairs

How to apply

  1. Download the Rates Rebate Form
  2. Fill it out with all the correct information
  3. Call 03 319 5026 for an appointment to get the application form signed by an authorised Council Officer

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Rates remissions

To be eligible for a rates remission all general and specific conditions of Councils Rates Remission Policy must be met. Council has a Rates Remission Policy which covers;

Rates remissions for uninhabitable properties

If so, you are likely to be eligible for rates remission. 

The Council offers 100% rates remission all rates on residential properties smaller than 1 ha that are uninhabitable due to damage from the November 2016 earthquake. Residential homes that are unsafe to occupy are eligible for 100% rates remission, and farm buildings and commercial property that is unsafe to occupy are eligible for rates remission on the improvement value (that means those farms and commercial properties will be rated as if they were bare land, subject to terms and conditions). Rates remission applies for the period of time that the building is unable to be used - or until demolition, or sale as-is.

Council will make a decision in June about how to continue this Policy into the new financial year starting on 1 July 2018.

How to apply

  1. Download the Rates Relief Application Form
  2. Fill it out with all the required information
  3. Post it to us at PO Box 6, 96 West End, Kaikoura 7300 or email us, or drop into the Council office at Level 2, 96 West End, Kaikoura

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Rating Valuations

Under NZ law, Council is required to carry out an assessment of the capital value of properties in the Kaikōura District every three years. This is called a revaluation and is carried out independently by Quotable Value (QV).

The last revaluation for Kaikōura District was effective September 2015. A new revaluation will take place in 2018 (this year). 

You can read more about the revaluation here.

The revaluation will take into account any earthquake damage to your property. If your property has significant damage that you think should be considered for the 2018 revaluation, please complete the online survey form here or complete a form available from Council’s front desk.

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Last updated: 18 May 2018