The Far North District Council has signed off on a 10.95% rates rise for the 2025/25 financial year, a figure slightly lower than forecasted.
The Far North District Council has signed off on a 10.95% rates rise for the 2025/25 financial year, a figure slightly lower than forecasted.
Former Far North District Council Deputy Mayor Dover Samuels said the 10.95% rate rise for the 2025/25 financial year is pushing residents to the brink and has called for a humanitarian approach.
The Far North District Council has signed off on 10.95% rates rise for the 2025/25 financial year,a figure slightly lower than forecasted.
Initially an 11.3% increase was forecast in the council’s 2024-27 Long-term Plan, but the figure was brought down to 10.95% and announced at an Extraordinary Council meeting earlier last month.
“The 10.95% figure is an average. Rates levied on individual properties will vary according to the services provided,” the FNDC said in a statement.
“For example, targeted rates may apply to a particular area only (eg wastewater or stormwater targeted rates), and the portion levied by Northland Regional Council will also affect individual rates.”
Northland Regional Council has confirmed its rates will rise by 3.54% for the financial year – an increase of $19.19 per rates bill on average over the next year.
The FNDC said in setting the 2025/26 rates, staff closely reviewed budgets and achieved cost reductions on day-to-day operations. Savings were also identified in the capital works programme.
Samuels said he would suggest they do a real analysis of poverty in the region.
“If there is anything they can do, it is to take the burden off the majority of those on the breadline. How about reshuffling priorities to a humanitarian perspective.”
Former Far North District Council Deputy Mayor Dover Samuels said the 10.95% rate rise would push already stretched residents. Photo / NZME
He said the bureaucrats making the decision are not the ones elected by residents and councillors needed to take the needs of the people into account.
“People are in such dire situations, we have a major population of those types of ratepayers in our district, and I would have thought councillors, especially coming up to election, would give that top consideration, rather than infrastructure investment.”
He said it didn’t matter if there were too many complaints about potholes and roads, residents’ ability to “put food on the table should be the priority”.
Residents also expressed dismay at the rates rise.
Paihia resident Peter Escher said he is already paying over $4000 annually in rates and the increase was disappointing.
He said the council spoke about infrastructure investment but he was not seeing it.
“The roads are stuffed; they are shocking. I am not going to be happy paying more for that.”
Kerikeri resident Trudy Hau said her rates will go up to over $6000 with the increase and expressed shock and disappointment at the decision.
During the Extraordinary Meeting, Kōwhai Deputy Mayor Kelly Stratford highlighted more than 20 projects that had been successfully delivered by the council over the past 18 months.
Those include funding for Te Hiku Sports Hub and Papa Hawaiki – Kaikohe and Districts Sportsville, and the opening of Te Puāwaitanga Bay of Islands Sports Hub; the desludging of wastewater treatment plants and improvements to Rāwene Wastewater Treatment Plant; ongoing roading upgrades and slip repairs (a key focus of the 2024-27 Long-term Plan); the upgrade to the Ōpua to Paihia walking track; adoption of Te Pātukurea-Kerikeri Waipapa Spatial Plan; and the near-completion of the Taipā Placemaking Project.
Taken across the three years of the 2024-27 Long-term Plan, the average rates increase will be 8.1%. That includes 4.5% in the first year (2024/25), 10.95% for 2025/26 and a projected 6.7% rise in 2026/27.
The new figure will be included in rates due on August 20. Property owners can find out exactly how much they will pay by entering their address into the online Rating Information Database.
