Rating Valuations

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2009 Grey District Revaluation

Every property in New Zealand must be revalued for rating purposes at least once every three years. Council contracts Quotable Value (QV) as its valuation service provider and the revaluation of the Grey District is being carried out this year. Once this new valuation data has been approved by the Valuer General, notices will be sent to all ratepayers advising of the new rating valuations. Notices for the 2009 general revaluation will be sent out on 14 December 2009.

Please read these notices carefully. If you do not agree with the valuation there is an objection process to follow and you will find details of how to lodge an objection on the valuation notice. The last day for objections will be 29 January 2010.

The values from the 2009 district revaluation will be used for rating purposes from 1 July 2010. Council will publish the proposed rates charges for the 2010/2011 year in Council’s draft Annual Plan. The draft Annual Plan will be open for submissions in April/May 2010. A summary of the draft plan will be sent to all ratepayers in May – please read this summary and/or the complete draft Plan as this is your chance to have input before the draft plan is finalised and the rates are set.

Effect of New Valuations on Rates

It is important to note that an increase in land value does not automatically mean that there will be an increase in rates.

Grey District Council rate assessments contain different charges that make up the annual levy:

•  General Rates (calculated on land value),
•  a Uniform Annual General Charge (set charge), and
•  Targeted Rates (set charge).

Your rateable land value is used to determine how much of the General Rate you pay in comparison to other properties in the district. General Rates are currently used to fund:

• Roading
• Refuse Disposal Sites
• Stormwater
• Flood Protection
• Community Services (Parks and Reserves, Rest Rooms etc…)
• Environmental Services (District Planning and Amenity Management)
• Rural Fire Authority

What area of the district you live in and what the property is used for determines how much you contribute towards these services (i.e. residential, rural, commercial etc…).

Broadly speaking, what will affect the amount of general rates you pay from 1 July 2010 is how your valuation moves in comparison to others in the district (i.e. has it increased more or less than the average?). This cannot be exactly predicted until Council releases the draft Annual Plan in April/May 2010.

The Uniform Annual General Charge (UAGC) and Targeted Rates (Sewerage, Water Supply and Refuse Collection) are set charges and will not be affected by changes in land value. For commercial properties the District Promotion Rate is calculated on the Capital Value.

Explanation of Property Values

Council levies general rates on the land value of the property (except for the District Promotion targeted rate which is calculated on capital value).

Land Value

This is the probable price that would have been paid for the land as at the date of valuation. The land value includes any development work which may have been carried out, such as, draining, excavation, filling, retaining walls, reclamation, grading, levelling, clearing of vegetation, fertility build-up, or protection from erosion or flooding.

Capital Value

This is the assessment of the probable price that would have been paid for the property if it had been for sale at the date of the last general revaluation (as shown on your Notice of Rating Valuation). Capital value does not include chattels, stocks, crops, machinery, goodwill or plantation trees.

Points to Consider

• Rating Valuations are completed every three years and are legislatively driven.
• Properties are valued using a mass appraisal system and objections are allowed free for a short period after which payment is required to change the result.
• The Rating Valuation is a relative number and is based on the market value of a property at a particular point in time. It cannot be taken as a market valuation. While Rating Valuations are based on market sales, they are a snapshot of the property market at a single point in time. As real estate has generally tended to fluctuate over time, a Rating Valuation cannot be expected to represent the true value for long.
• Sale prices usually include chattels, while Rating Valuations do not include chattels. Chattels can often be quite considerable and include carpets, curtains, light fittings or other items sold with the property such as furniture, pool tables etc.
• It is not feasible to inspect every property in the district nor do we consider it necessary. We already hold individual details about your property, which includes a plan of the main improvements, age, materials, floor area, construction type, other on-site improvements etc.

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