Overdue Chch rates top $3m
Christchurch ratepayers owe more than $3 million in overdue rates, with the worst offender racking up $353,000 worth of debt.
The Christchurch City Council is chasing unpaid rates from 1692 ratepayers, who owe an average of $1821 each.
Failure to pay rates can result in court action and ultimately a forced sale of the house in order to get the rates paid.
Figures released by the council under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act, show two ratepayers were taken to court in the past 12 months for failing to pay their rates.
However, there have been no rating sales since July 2016. There were two rating sales between 2010 and 2016 – in Burnside and Phillipstown – which recovered $85,000 of owed rates.
The council has yet to take court action against the ratepayer who owes the largest debt.
A council spokeswoman said the chief financial officer has been in correspon- dence with the person ‘‘over some time’’ to try and achieve settlement. ‘‘It is a very complex case and all options are being considered in an attempt to finalise the matter.’’
If those attempts failed, court action would be instigated, the spokeswoman said. Despite continued rates increases,
‘‘It is a very complex case and all options are being considered in an attempt to finalise the matter.’’
Christchurch City Council spokeswoman
the total amount of overdue rates has fallen 24 per cent since 2017, when $3.8m of unpaid rates was owed.
The rates burden on homeowners is only expected to increase after last year’s 10-year budget, the long-term plan, projected a
52.35 per cent rise in rates by
2028.
The council has managed to reduce the predicted rates rise for 2019/20 from 5.5 per cent to 5 per cent, but the final figure will not be confirmed until the budget is approved at the end of June. The
5 per cent increase will mean people with a
$500,000 home pay an additional $131 annually. Their rates bill would be $2766, equating to a weekly bill of $53.19.
Mayor Lianne Dalziel and councillors were aware of the increasing impact rates were having on household finances.
Dalziel said earlier this year, the council had worked hard to save people money by being ‘‘smarter’’ with way things were done and she hoped the increase could be reduced even further following consultation with the public.