The Rating Valuations Act 1998 requires that every property in New Zealand must be revalued for rating purposes at least once every three years.  The last revaluation for the Waitomo District was in September 2012 and therefore a revaluation will be undertaken again in September 2015. 

WDC’s Valuation Service Provider, Quotable Value New Zealand (QV) will carry out the revaluation. Quotable Value use a ‘mass-appraisal’ method.  This method is widely used and takes into consideration property attributes and local sales.  A rating valuer will consider relevant historical property sales from the area around the time of the revaluation.  A market value trend is established and applied to similar property.  Stringent quality standards need to be met and the process is independently audited by the Office of the Valuer General, a division of Land Information New Zealand.

Valuation Notices

All property owners and ratepayers will be posted notices of the revised values in October 2015.  The valuation notice will detail the proposed new Capital Value of your property as at 1 September 2015.  The Capital Value reflects the probable price that would be paid for the property it if had been for sale at the date of the general revaluation.  This valuation does not include chattels, dairy company shares, stock, crops, machinery or trees.  The valuation is deemed to include GST (if any) for residential property, and exclude GST for other property types.

The new rateable values will be first used for rating purposes from 1 July 2016.  Changes in rating values for each property are not the primary cause of any increase in rates that might be assessed at a later date.  It is the value of your property in relation to the value of all the other rateable properties in the area that is the significant factor.  If your increase in property value is at the average level then the change in your share of property rates will be minimal.

Valuation notices are also issued between valuations when changes are made to properties.  Changes may include: subdivision of land, amalgamation of more than one parcel of land, changing land use, erecting new buildings, or adding to, altering, or demolishing existing buildings.  When a valuation is issued between general revaluations, the values are assessed as at the date of the last General Revaluation to preserve uniformity between properties.

General Revaluation Objections

If you are dissatisfied with your new valuation you are encouraged to contact WDC and discuss your concerns.  If you wish to make a formal objection, you will need to lodge an objection in writing before the closing date for objections detailed on your valuation notice.

The official objection form is available from the Waitomo District Council office, Queen Street, Te Kuiti. Alternatively, the form can be downloaded in PDF format by visiting the Rating Information page on our website. 

Once your objection has been reviewed by WDC’s Valuation Service Provider you will be notified in writing of the outcome.  If you are still not satisfied, you may seek to have your objection heard by the Land Valuation Tribunal.

For more information please contact our Customer Services Team on 0800 932 4357 or visit us at the WDC Office, Queen Street, Te Kuiti.