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Property Revaluations

What is the valuation for?

The valuations are compiled by statute, under the Rating Valuations Act 1998, mainly as a uniform basis for levying local authority and regional council rates. They also serve as a useful guide for property owners and other interested parties, which is impartial and independently assessed.

How often are valuations issued?

Every property in New Zealand must be revalued for rating purposes at least every once 3 years according to the Rating Valuations Act 1998. In Wellington they are assessed every year. QV is contracted by the individual Councils to include each property’s capital value and land value for rating purposes

Is the rating value lower than the market value?

While the RV’s are based on market sales they are a ‘snapshot’ of the market at a single point in time. In Far North District the effective date of valuation is 1 September 2007.

As real estate generally has tended to fluctuate over time, a rating valuation cannot be expected to reflect the true value for long. This has been particularly evident in property market recently. 

Rating values also do not include chattels, which often can be quite considerable- including carpets, curtains, light fittings and other loose furniture.

How does Quotable Values assess Rating values?

When the value of your property was assessed, the valuers considered a number of factors, including:

• What properties are selling for in your neighbourhood
• The demand to buy or rent property in your neighbourhood
• The type of property: is it a house, townhouse, factory, or shop etc
• Improvements made since the last valuation
• Information in the existing District Valuation Roll
• Information about residential and commercial trends obtained from market surveys

Finally the valuers look at your property from the street, to check that it matches the information in their records and to compare it with similar properties.

The values are then subject to an audit process by the Office of the Valuer General prior to being sent to the property owners.

Do the valuations include GST?

The rating valuation includes GST, if any, for residential property. Generally in most residential transactions the parties are not registered for GST. For other property types GST is excluded.

How can they value a property without inspecting it?

The valuers conduct a significant amount of roadside inspections throughout the revaluation process. In some areas as many as 80% of properties are inspected.

It is not feasible to undertake a full inspection of every property in the district nor is it considered necessary. Individual details about the properties are already held including a plan of the main improvements, age, materials, floor area, construction type, other onsite improvements etc. The valuers receive notification of any major change such as subdivisions and building consents issued from the council and carry out roadside inspections to record other changes.

Why has LV gone up and VI decreased?

In accordance with the Rating Valuations Act 1998 the Land Value is assessed as if it was vacant. 

Assessing your rating valuations involves research into two distinct areas of the real estate market - improved properties and vacant properties, which often behave independently of each other.

In redevelopment areas where there is often a strong market for vacant sites while (older and obsolete) properties are not in demand, this occurrence is not uncommon.

If your Land Value is increasing at a faster rate than your Capital Value then the effect will be a reduction in your Value of Improvements, but remember that the improvements value is simply a residual and does not necessarily equate to the replacement cost of the buildings on your land.

Will this valuation increase my rates?

Not necessarily. Valuations only affect the incidence of rating and some people will pay less. Usually only properties that increase more than the average will pay higher rates, but that will depend on whether the council decides to keep total rates the same and what differentials (between property/categories) it decides to adopt.

When will the revaluation show on my FNDC rates invoice?

The new values will not be shown on the rate accounts until they come into effect on 1 July in the year following the general revaluation. 

Can anyone get the valuation of any property they are interested in?

The valuations are available for public inspection at council offices for a short period immediately following the revaluation.

Alternatively, access the Quotable Values website, www.qv.co.nz to order up to date property information. You will need to use the code that will be supplied with your valuation notice.

What rights do I have if I disagree with the valuation?

These are explained on the reverse side of the owners notice under the various headings:

“What can I object too”

“How do I Object”

“ What happens if I lodge an objection”?

In the first instance you can telephone the QV call centre on 0800 QV Rating (0800 787 284). If the call centre is unable to resolve your issues they will forward the details to one of the valuers to call you back.

Alternatively there is a form that you can complete on the QV website - Objection Form or

You can download this PDF version and send it to:

Valuation Objections
Quotable Values Ltd
PO Box 5019
Wellington

Fax: 04 4983669

Contact Details for Quotable Values

For enquiries relating to property revaluations, in the first instance you can telephone the QV call centre on 0800 QV Rating (0800 787 284). If the call centre is unable to resolve your issues they will forward the details to one of the valuers to call you back.

For online property information visit www.qv.co.nz

(NB. You do not need to log-in to view the general information on the QV website, you only need to log-in to purchase their report services)

or

For all other enquiries look up further contact details from the QV website https://www.qv.co.nz/faqandsupport/contactus

You can get a range of information about properties in the Far North District and around New Zealand from Quotable Value Ltd including:

• The current estimated market value of a property with an E-Valuer report.
• Using the Local sales report to find out what properties have sold recently in your area and for how much.
• Looking up a properties Sales history or Capital Value.
• Market statistics, so you can see what has been happening in the property market.

You can get valuable information on just about every home in New Zealand.

Find out more here…