Rates on average home closing on $3000 a year.

Rainfall levels 'off the charts' as upper North Island prepares for a second big drenching this week.

An 18-year-old engineering apprentice is taking on one of New Zealand's biggest insurance firms in a dispute involving two cows.

Stunning pictures of McLaren Falls in the Kaimai Range have emerged, taken just hours apart. Bay of Plenty Times chief photographer

Vessel evicted from Tauranga refused entry to Fiji.

Whangamata one of worst-hit towns after most serious storm in decades strikes.

A party of Otumoetai College students camping in Whangamata will spend the night in the town hall.

RENA WRECKAGE: The remains of the wreck of the Rena shown in white on the section of Astrolabe Reef where it ran aground on October

A massive slip has closed State Highway 25 between Waihi and Whiritoa. It is one of a sting of closures around the region following heavy rain overnight. Made with funding from NZ On Air

Coromandel residents left homeless after being evacuated due to flooding.

How safe are our swimming spots? How much toxic bacteria lurks in our idyllic water?

Weather watches or warning are in place for most of the upper North Island as more rain is forecast over the week.

Linda Munn is best known as one of three women who helped to create the Tino Rangatiratanga flag. But how did she start out making art? And what is she doing nearly three decades on? Made with funding from NZ On Air.

A dirty ship was ordered to leave Tauranga waters after it was found to be severely contaminated. In a New Zealand first, the Ministry

Youth drugs service says the number of referrals it's receiving for young people with P problems appears to have plateaued.

Tauranga Fire Service and insurance investigators were today trying to discover the cause of the blaze which left a Birch Ave storage

Local iwi Ngai Te Hapu wants the whole of the wrecked Rena container ship removed.

A 42-year-old man is due to appear in the Tauranga District Court charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. The

French sailors Jean-Pierre and Paulette van Hille have returned to Tauranga after 20 years to continue their long love affair with New Zealand. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

Are you're looking for a life-long friend who likes lots of cuddles and taking long walks?

War trench found on side of state highway roadworks could be 'nationally significant'.

Four of every ten homes sold in Tauranga are being snapped up by people who already own property.

Jonathan Lawson has extensive training in nursing, aero-medical support and intensive care. Now he's turning his hand to appearance medicine, with his new business which brings botox treatments into the home. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

Jonathan Lawson has a new business which brings Botox to the comfort of your own home. With extensive training in nursing, aero-medical support and intensive care - he's now turning his hand to appearance medicine. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

Whakatane Mayor Tony Bonne is confident in the success of the region, despite a Maxim Institute report projecting population decline in the next two decades. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

Kawerau Mayor Malcolm Campbell discusses what the industrial service centre needs to do to ensure a prosperous future, after a Maxim Institute report forecast population decline in the area in the next two decades. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

Families who have lost loved ones in crashes involving foreign drivers horrified at two more deaths.

Hauraki District Mayor John Tregidga is optimistic about the future of his region - despite dire predictions. But - he wants Government agencies bought back to the district. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

By Jordan Bond One in five Bay of Plenty children are not fully immunised when they start school, with the district health board

by Kiri GillespieDAMAGED: The roof of this car is stoved in after a crash with a man attempting to cross the Tauranga Eastern Link