Postponement of Auckland Council 2020 revaluation

Grant from Grant Haworth - Barfoot & Thompson

All councils in New Zealand are required to revalue properties within a three-year period.

Earlier this year, Auckland Council commenced its latest revaluation exercise that would result in updated capital values being available on all properties in early November 2020. These valuations are one component in helping determine what portion of the region’s total rates an individual property owner pays.

COVID-19 and the lockdown have made it difficult to conduct a reliable revaluation this year. Property valuations are generated using recent sales data of comparable properties and other relevant market evidence such as rental levels. That sales data is currently limited, as COVID-19 has caused a significant drop in both the volume of property sales and the quality of rental evidence.

As a result, the Valuer-General has agreed to Auckland Council’s request to defer its 2020 general revaluation for one year because of difficulties caused by COVID-19.

Impact on rates

Rates will continue to be generated based on the current (2017) values in the same manner as the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 rates have been.

Impact on property prices

Rating valuations are not intended for market use. They are a mechanism to allocate rates among property owners.