Check for flood risks before you buy or build

Assess flood hazards

Land that gets covered by rainwater during heavy rainfall is considered a flood hazard.

Flood water can:

• pool (build up) in low points
• move quickly down a slope.

Check our Flood viewer to find out if there could be a flood hazard on or near your property.

Flood plains shown on the Flood Viewer have a one per cent chance of flooding in a given year. This is often called a 'one-in-100-year flood'. Some areas may flood more often depending on the local landscape.

Get property information

To help you make informed decisions, you should get:

• a Land Information Memorandum (LIM) report - this is a summary of information about the property, and includes identified flood hazards
• a Property file – this shows building consents, resource consents and all work done on the property
• a Flood risk assessment report – this lists potential impacts of flood hazards on the property. Find an engineer to make this assessment on the Engineering New Zealand website
• pre-application advice – this explains the application process, fees, and consents and permits you may need.