Rates FAQ

The rating year is from 1 July to 30 June the following year.

There are four equal instalments which are billed quarterly. You can find the instalment periods on the your rates bill page.

Due dates must be strictly adhered to, as payments received after these dates will incur a 10 per cent penalty.

Remember to allow sufficient postal time for payments as we cannot be held responsible for mail that does not reach us on time.

Rates notice are always sent the 1st day of the month they are due, so the next one is 1 August 2024, then 1 Nov, 1 Feb and 1 May. If you prefer to receive your rates notices by email, let us know by updating your contact details online.

If you pay your rates by direct debit weekly, fortnightly or monthly, you'll only receive your first rates notice in July for the year's rates.

All rates and charges are inclusive of GST, a tax invoice is generated for each instalment. There is no GST on penalties.

Provided payment has been made within 7 days of the penalty date and no other penalties have been incurred in the last 36 months, you will automatically have your penalty remitted.

There is no need to apply for a 'remission of penalty for late payment' in these circumstances.

Applications based on compassionate grounds/extenuating circumstances e.g. death, hospitalisation, sickness etc. can be made on an individual basis (in writing) and do not require the payment to have been made within the 7 days. These applications are approved/declined by the Revenue Supervisor and are done on a case-by-case basis.

If the change is just a spelling mistake, you can complete a form online to update your details.

If you've changed your name by marriage or divorce, the Local Government Rating Act requires you to notify the relevant Local Authority within 1 month of the registration of name change in the land transfer register. The name on your rates notice will only be changed if it has been recorded on the title.

If the change is a business name (e.g. partnership or trust) we must be notified of the change of ownership via a solicitor.

If a ratepayer is deceased and the remaining owner wishes to remove their name, verification from a solicitor is required.

Valuations are typically carried out every three years. Council contracts Quotable Value to complete this work.

Contact Customer Support to check that the mailing address we hold on our database is correct, if changes are required you can update your contact details online or notify us in writing of correct address details by email.

If NZ Post has returned any rates notices, the rates team will hold these until we're able to find a current address.

Contact Customer Support to check that a Notice of Sale has been received to show you are the new owner. If Waipa District Council has not yet received a Notice of Sale, you will need to get in touch with your solicitor to ask that this be provided as we are unable to change the owner details without it.

If we received the Notice of Sale between generating and posting of the rates invoice, we can forward a copy of the updated rates notice to you.

Contact Customer Support to check that the Waipa District Council have received a Notice of Sale. If we haven't you will need to get in touch with your solicitor, as this is a change of ownership we need confirmation via a Notice of Sale via a solicitor.

You can email the rates team to resolve this.

All properties that were subdivided and Council received the new title information prior to 30 June 2024, have been rated accordingly from 1 July following the issue of title.

For subdivisions outside of this period, you can email the rates team to resolve this.

Under new legislation, a separate title is deemed to be a separate rating unit. However, properties can be deemed to be contiguous if ratepayers meet the following criteria:

1. The properties are owned by the same person/persons AND
2. Used jointly as a single property AND
3. Separated only by road, railway, drain, water race, river or stream.

In most rural cases where there is more than one title, they haven't been separated as it is obvious that the property is one farm and used as that.

Two urban properties that each have a dwelling cannot be deemed to be contiguous.

Valuation of your new building will be undertaken by our valuers at preline stage. Once we receive the new values the property will have rating amended from 1 July following the valuation.

UAGC's will be applicable on all adjoining properties, however if the adjoining property is vacant a remission of the UAGC will be applied.

The Rating Information Database (RID) is available online and in both Te Awamutu and Cambridge offices. You can search using an address, a property ID or a legal description.

Please note, property owners details are not provided.

Alternatively you can download free of charge a Property Snapshot Report and/or a District Plan Snapshot Report online. You can also request a property file search through Customer Support.

You can also apply for a Land Information Memorandum (LIM), please note that a fee will apply.

Setting up an EasyPay Direct Debit allows rates, debtor accounts and water accounts to be paid by Direct Debit, where payments can be automatically deducted from your bank account. More than 50% of our customers use this service.

This option allows you to save time, reduces hassle with postage, payments are made to suit you and there are no worries about penalty charges. Please note that you'll need to contact us at least 24 hours in advance to cancel or suspend the authority when you are paying current rates.

You can set up your direct debit by completing a form online.

Contact our Rates team to discuss the best options for you.

Sure! Contact our Customer Support team via the Contact Us page or phone 0800 WAIPADC (924 723)

Land Value: This is the value of just the land, as if it had no buildings or improvements on it. This is based on its highest and best use. For example, if the land is able to be developed, it is likely to be valued more than land that cannot be developed.

Capital Value: This is the total value of your property including land and buildings. This is an estimate of what your property may have sold for on 1 August 2022 (excluding chattels which include things like curtains, light fittings etc).

Value of Improvements: The Value of Improvements is simply the difference between your Capital Value and Land Value. It does not represent the cost to build or the insurance value of buildings.

Rating valuations are a snapshot in time.

Your new valuation is an estimate of the likely selling price (without chattels) if the property had sold on 1 August 2022.

However, because property prices are always on the move, your new valuation may not reflect your property’s market value if it was sold today.

If you need a current market valuation (if you are selling your house for example) you should hire a professional registered valuer. This is not something Council needs to be involved in because the only valuation we use for rating purposes, is the one received from Quotable Value. This is the same for all properties across the district.

Normally you would have received your property valuation much earlier but unfortunately there have been delays in revaluations right across the country.

These revaluations will be used to help calculate everyone’s share of rates for the next three years, starting 1 July 2023.