On 8 May 2026, Property Council submitted on Wellington City Council’s Draft Annual Plan 2026/27.
Why this matters to our members
The Draft Annual Plan 2026/27 outlines the budget for Wellington City Council for the next twelve months and will influence outcomes across the Wellington region. Council is proposing an average rates increase of 7.4 percent and an increase to the downtown targeted rate of 6 percent.
Our view
These increases come as pressure continues to build across Wellington’s commercial property market. Wellington already has the highest business differential in the country at 3.7:1, alongside high water rates from the newly formed Tiaki Wai. Rising vacancy rates and reduced CBD foot traffic mean Wellington City Council needs to consider how these costs are impacting growth and investment. Property Council has opposed these changes and called for greater transparency around the downtown targeted rate.
At a high level, we recommended that Wellington City Council:
- Investigate alternative funding and financing mechanisms, including an application
for a regional deal with central government; - Undertake ongoing, independent assessments of its asset base and funding
approach, with publicly reported outcomes, to ensure existing resources are fully
optimised and reliance on rates is minimised; - Adopt a clear, staged approach to reducing the business differential over time, with
a view to achieving a more equitable distribution of the rates burden between
residential and commercial ratepayers; - Remove the vacant site and derelict buildings differential;
- Reduce the downtown targeted rate to better reflect the current commercial
realities facing Wellington businesses; and - Provide clear and transparent reporting on the allocation of the downtown
targeted rate, including the specific outcomes it funds, to ensure a demonstrable
alignment between those who pay the rate and those who benefit from it.