Rates for separately used or inhabited parts of a property (SUIP)

Some properties have more than one dwelling on the same land title. This page explains how we define residential and business SUIPS, single-family use rates reductions and how to object to our classification of your separate dwelling.

Residential SUIPs

A residential SUIP is part of a property that can be lived in or used separately from the rest of a property. It has separate facilities that are not shared with others on the same property, like a bathroom, kitchen or an area to prepare food.

Examples of residental SUIPS are:

• a house
• a 'granny flat' or other modular homes
• some transportable homes
• boarding houses
• a block of flats.

When you have more than one SUIP on the same land title

Each separately used part of a property is considered a SUIP. Rates apply to each SUIP whether they are in use or not.

Rates charges include:

• the Uniform Annual General Charge
• applicable targeted rates.

Visit How your rates bill is made up and what it pays for to learn more information on how your rates are calculated.

Common examples of a residential property with more than one SUIP

Some examples of a property with more than one SUIP include:

• a property with both a residential house and a smaller dwelling.
• a residential house with an area under the same roof that can be lived in separately, like a basement flat.
• a property with a shop or other business on the ground floor and a residence upstairs.

Examples of the types of rates charged for residential SUIPs

Visit Find your property rates or valuation and type in your address to see your charges for the current rating year.

How we define a residential SUIP

We also consider whether your SUIP has one or all of these things:

• a kitchen or kitchenette with a sink with running water
• built-in or wall-mounted benches, drawers or shelves that could provide space for food preparation and/or kitchen appliances
• a separate toilet
• a separate bathroom
• separate internal or external access.

A separate laundry area is not needed for a dwelling to be considered a SUIP.

Most simple sleep-outs or cabins are not SUIPS if they:

• do not have drainage or water pipes installed
• are not being used as part of a boarding house or short term accommodation.

Other residential SUIPs

SUIPs also include rooms and spaces in properties like boarding houses where someone has a tenancy, lease, licence or other agreement to live in a room or use a sleeping space within a room, but shares bathroom and toilet facilities with other residents.

If the rented room is in a residential home, it is probably not considered a SUIP if:

• it is part of a shared tenancy under the same roof
• a main tenant or tenants get flatmates for rooms under the same roof
• there are fewer than six tenants that share bathroom and kitchen facilities
• it has been advertised to potential tenants as a whole home to rent and you do not have separate agreements with each tenant.

Visit Boarding houses on the Tenancy Services website to understand whether your property is a boarding house.

SUIPs used for a single-family household

We will reduce SUIP rates where there is more than one SUIP on a property, if:

• both parts of the property are under the same roof, and
• there is internal access between the two parts, and
• both parts are used by a single family.

We may need to inspect the property if we cannot confirm all conditions have been met through floor plans and photographs.

Single-family SUIP declaration form

The owner or occupant of the property must sign a SUIP declaration form to confirm it is for single-family use. 

Email enquiry@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz with your completed form.

Business SUIPs

Business properties are also charged rates for SUIPs. SUIP charges apply to each separate space in a building that is intended to be leased or used as a business.

Examples of business SUIPs

Examples include:

• a shop in a shopping centre
• a business premises with a separate residential area
• a home-based business like a hair salon
• an ATM in a building that is not a bank
• billboards
• a shop with a café that operates as a separate business
• a commercial building leased, or sub-leased, to multiple tenants
• a separate dwelling used for short-term accommodation
• spaces in an office block intended for use by a different business to the owner.

Object to our SUIP classification

Visit Change your property's rating or waste information in our database if you think the information we have used to calculate your property rates is wrong.

While we review your objection, you still need to pay your rates by the due date shown on the invoice. If you do not pay on time, penalties will be added. If your objection is successful and your rates are changed, we will apply a credit to your account.