Napier land rating values rise 37% as rates review feedback sought

The Napier City Council emphasises that a 37 per cent QV increase in land values doesn't mean rates will increase 37 per cent.

Napier land values have increased an average of 37 per cent in the latest three-yearly Rating Value assessments by government agency Quotable Value.

But while the valuations are used in the calculation of rates, the Napier City Council emphasises it doesn't mean rates will increase 37 per cent, with the rates still set according to the revenue required each year.

Mayor Kirsten Wise said, "Any rates change to your property will depend on how your property valuation compares to the average."

The revaluations of the city's properties don't result in an increase to the overall rates collected by the council, Wise said.

Setting the rates each year is a decision the council makes when preparing its Annual Plan, and rates revenue is generally less than 50 per cent of a council's revenue.

Ratepayers will next week start receiving details in their 2020 Notice of Rating Valuation from Quotable Value, assessed at September 20 and for rating purposes coming into effect from July 1 next year. They have a right to object if they disagree.

Separate to the new QV ratings, the council is currently involved in Revenue and Financing Policy consultation, asking the community what it thinks about proposals to change the way rates are calculated in the first review of its type in 30 years.

Public meetings have been held and ratepayers can have their say on the website www.sayitnapier.nz before 5pm on December 2.

"No decisions have been made yet and we are keen to hear about what people think," Wise said.

One Roof property commentator Ashley Church has reiterated that the valuations are not intended to be the actual value of a property.

OneRoof property commentator Ashley Church - based in Auckland but soon to move "home" to Hawke's Bay, where he was born and also served three terms on the Napier City Council from 1989 to 1998 - reiterated that the valuations were not intended to be the actual value of a property.

A former CEO of the Property Institute, which represents all registered valuers, he said: "Even if they were correct, it is only at the time they were set, and that is only once every three years."

A Quotable Valuation statement says valuations have been prepared for 26,318 properties on behalf of the Napier City Council, showing the total rateable value for the district is now $20,214,258,000 with the land value of those properties now valued at $9,679,721,000.

On average, the value of residential housing has increased 35.2 per cent since 2017, with the average house value now sitting at $655,000, while the corresponding average land value increased by 37.1 per cent to an average of $304,000.

Hastings values were done last year, with the total rateable value of the properties within Hastings District Council set at $27.8 billion, an increase of 40.5 per cent on the 2016 valuation. Residential housing in the district showed an average capital value increase of 41.9 per cent, with the average house value at $562,400.

The valuations in the Tararua District are being finalised, with notices being sent to ratepayers at the end of January, while the next valuations in the Wairoa and Central Hawke's Bay districts will be done later next year.

Commenting on the Napier valuations, QV senior consultant Andrea Christie said, "The demand for residential housing has been very strong since New Zealand came out of lockdown, with most residential properties seeing increases of 30-45 per cent since the 2017 revaluation.

"The biggest increases have been experienced in the entry-level locations where first-home buyers are competing hard with investors."

Meanwhile, commercial property capital values have increased by 30.3 per cent, with a corresponding land value increase of 76.2 per cent since 2017. Capital values in the industrial sector have increased by 47 per cent, with industrial land values rising 84.4 per cent over the three-year period.

"This shows a solid performance for commercial and industrial properties which have displayed resilience throughout the challenges of lockdown," Christie said. "The industrial locations have performed particularly well with the low-interest-rate environment providing opportunities for existing tenants to become their own landlords for the first time."

Since 2017, the average capital value of an improved lifestyle property has risen by 30.3 per cent to $1.2m, while the corresponding land value for a lifestyle property increased by 45.2 per cent to $563,000.

"The market for lifestyle rural properties experienced considerable growth over the past three years and the lifestyle market strength aligns with the high-end residential increases," Christie added.

The updated rating valuations are independently audited by the Office of the Valuer General and need to meet rigorous quality standards before the new rating valuations are certified.