Help ahead for low-income ratepayers facing $200 rises

By CLAIRE TREVETT

Help may be at hand for people whose homes have been valued beyond their means to pay the rates.

A report, to be discussed by the Auckland Regional Council today, said the council had power to help people on fixed or low incomes whose property values had risen significantly and boosted their rates.

It suggested a payment programme be set up for people on low incomes whose rates increases were more than $200.

It could also help pay the rates above $200 for ratepayers on low incomes whose rates had increased by more than $300.

To qualify, people must be low-income or meet the criteria for rates postponement.

Paying penalties for people who qualified would have no financial impact on the council because money in penalty payments had not been factored into its annual plan.

It was estimated that under 20 per cent of all those with $300 increases or more might qualify for the assistance. This was estimated to cost the ARC $583,533.

A Work and Income spokesman said people who could not afford to pay should see if they qualified for assistance from the department.

"We have anecdotal evidence of a few people approaching Work and Income saying they may be experiencing hardship as a consequence of getting a rates bill in front of them."

He said people on benefits or on low incomes could qualify, depending on their circumstances.

But one ratepayer said he tried to get help from the department and was told he should have seen it coming and budgeted for it.

Doug Walker and his wife are pensioners raising their two teenage sons.

The Manurewa couple admitted their rates increase from $96 to $122 was not bad.

But the bill landed in their letterbox just after their son's NCEA bill for $230.

Mr Walker said they earned a combined total of $500 a week, from which they had to feed four people, and pay for rates, power, water, school fees, doctors' bills, uniforms, petrol, insurance and a mortgage.

They lived frugally but did not have extra amounts of cash to spend on big unforeseen bills, he said.

They had asked for a loan from Work and Income that they could pay off at $10 a week.

He said he was told he should have seen the two bills coming and budgeted for it.

While the loan would have made it easier, he said they would pay their rates.

"We have to pay it. My wife just won't go shopping this week. She is clever with food and there's plenty of noodles."

* A $130,000 rates levy sent to Counties Manukau District Health Board is among 180 bills sent by mistake to non-rateable organisations by the Auckland Regional Council.

Nigel Bernie, project leader for regional rates, said the council had been provided with incorrect information by the Manukau City Council about which properties were rateable. Hospitals, schools and churches were among those exempt from paying rates.

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