Hastings Rate Review Could Shift Higher Costs To Homeowners

Hastings District Council’s residential ratepayers would bear the financial brunt if the council elects to change its annual plan in the wake of a shock rate hike for commercial and industrial businesses.

The council is reopening consultation on its 2026/27 annual plan for an additional two weeks.

Its average rate rise proposed for the year is 5.9%. But while that average lowers to just 4.0% for residential properties, it currently sits at an average rates rise of 23.5% for industrial and 28.9% for commercial properties.

The business community has reacted with widespread anger to the rate rise, and said the valuation information that drove it was not available early enough during the original consultation period for affected property owners to have their say.

Currently, commercial and industrial property owners pay a differential rate of between 2.3 and three times the general rate paid by residential ratepayers, depending on where they are in the district.

A council spokesperson said differentials reflected the greater impact the properties had on essential infrastructure and services, but they were open to changing the differential if consultation suggested that was what people wanted.

“Changing the differentials would move some of the cost onto other ratepayers, with residential the most affected.

“It would not change Council’s overall budget.”

Since 2018, rates in Hastings’ CBD have gone up on average 7.8% annually, while residential rates have gone up an average of 11% annually.

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New rating valuations from Quotable Value were only provided to the council on May 4, and showed a rise in commercial and industrial land values and a drop in residential, which loaded more of the rates cost on businesses.

The new valuation caused an outcry from the Hastings business sector, who felt blindsided by increases far higher than the overall rate increase of 5.9% the council had earlier flagged.

Hastings Mayor Wendy Schollum said the council agreed that further consultation was important.

“I am extremely disappointed in the valuation process, which sits outside the council’s control.

“Commercial and industrial property owners did not have access to the valuation information early enough in the process to properly understand what the proposed rates would mean for them,” she said.

One of Hastings’ biggest businesses, Pan Pac, is facing a 56% increase. A spokesperson for Pan Pac said earlier that the cost comes on top of rising energy costs.

“We need local government to support business in the region,” the spokesperson said.

The extra consultation time will give Pan Pac, along with other affected businesses, a chance to have their say, Schollum said.

“We want to hear what people from all sectors think is fair,” Schollum said.

“If relief is provided to commercial and industrial property owners, that cost does not disappear. It shifts to other ratepayers, most likely residential households.”

The consultation will run until June 30, and council’s draft Annual Plan for 2026/27 is scheduled to be considered for adoption in the second week of July.

A comprehensive review of the district’s rate allocation model will be undertaken as part of the development of the council’s next Long Term Plan, with community consultation beginning later this year.

The consultation has two options.

Option One

Average 5.9% rate increase as consulted on during the Annual Plan consultation with differentials unchanged.

• CBD commercial (Hastings and Havelock North) 3x
• Other urban commercial 2.75x
• Non-urban commercial and chartered clubs 2.35x

Option 2

• Average 5.9% rate increase as consulted on during the Annual Plan consultation with differentials changed.
• CBD commercial (Hastings and Havelock North) from 3x to 2.75x
• Other urban commercial from 2.75x to 2.5x
• Non-urban commercial and chartered clubs from 2.35x to 2.2x
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