Across New Zealand, local councils, including the Dunedin City Council (DCC), have the power to designate private homes as heritage properties. While preserving heritage is important for maintaining our shared history and culture, the current system allows councils to impose these designations without the consent of homeowners. This has significant consequences for those affected:

1. Financial Burden on Homeowners:

When a home is heritage-listed, the property owner is often faced with increased insurance premiums and maintenance costs, as they are required to use specialized materials and follow specific guidelines for renovations or repairs. This can be financially crippling, especially if the homeowner is already struggling to meet day-to-day expenses. Studies have shown that heritage-listed homes can lose up to 30% of their market value, leaving homeowners with assets that are difficult to sell or finance.

2. Restricted Property Rights:

Heritage designations often come with strict rules regarding what homeowners can and cannot do with their property. For example, adding solar panels, removing chimneys, or making alterations that change the external appearance of the property often require special council consent, a process that is costly, time-consuming, and uncertain. In some cases, homeowners are prevented from making even necessary safety upgrades to protect their families.

3. Loss of Property Value:

Many homeowners find that their property’s value decreases after being heritage-listed, as the restrictions make the home less attractive to potential buyers. This not only affects the owner’s ability to sell the property but can also lead to negative equity, where the homeowner owes more on the property than it is worth.

The Call for Change

We believe that the current system is unfair to private homeowners who are being forced to bear the financial and emotional costs of heritage preservation. The preservation of heritage is a public good, but under the current system, it is private individuals who are footing the bill without adequate support or compensation.

No private home should be designated as a heritage site without the owner’s agreement. Homeowners should have the right to decide if they are willing to take on the responsibility and costs associated with maintaining a heritage property. Alternatively, if a council deems a property so valuable that it must be preserved, then the council should be willing to purchase the property at full market value to fairly compensate the homeowner.

This petition seeks to protect the rights of homeowners by demanding a fairer and more transparent process for heritage designations. We ask for your support in ensuring that private homeowners are not unfairly burdened by decisions that should benefit the entire community.

(Added) In addition, if the councils have no cost to heritage listing a property, they can simply put out broad criteria and heritage listing as many properties as they like, conversely, if there is a cost for each heritage listing, councils will scrutinise each proposal carefully and this will ensure only truly significant properties be heritage protected and preserved.

Petition: Require Homeowner Consent for Heritage Listings or Fair Compensation for Private Property Owners

We, the undersigned, call on the Dunedin City Council (DCC) and other councils across New Zealand to implement fair and just policies regarding heritage listings of private homes. Currently, councils are able to designate homes as heritage properties without the consent of homeowners, leading to significant financial burdens, restrictions on property use, and loss of property value for those affected.

 

We believe that:

1. Homeowners’ Agreement Should Be Required for Heritage Listing  

   Heritage designation imposes significant obligations on homeowners, including increased maintenance costs and restrictions on renovations. As it directly affects their property rights and financial security, we believe that no property should be heritage-listed without the express agreement of the homeowner.

2. Fair Compensation Should Be Provided

If a council believes that a property is of such significant heritage value that it must be preserved, then the council should offer to purchase the property at full market value to fairly compensate the homeowner. This would prevent families from being financially disadvantaged by heritage restrictions and ensure that councils bear the cost of preserving public heritage.

 

We, the undersigned, agree that:

• Private homes should not be heritage-listed without the homeowner’s consent.
• If a property is designated as heritage, the homeowner should have the option to sell the property to the council at market value.

By signing this petition, you are supporting fair treatment of homeowners, ensuring that they have a voice in decisions that affect their property and financial future. 

(Edit/Added)

In addition, if councils face no financial cost to heritage listing a property, they can simply use broad criteria and list as many properties as they like without consequence. Conversely, if there is a cost attached to each heritage listing, councils would need to carefully scrutinize each proposal, ensuring that only truly significant properties are protected and preserved. This approach would prevent overreach and ensure that heritage protection is used appropriately.

Moreover, many other councils in New Zealand include a requirement for owner consent before listing properties as heritage sites. For example, councils such as Hastings, Hurunui, Ruapehu, Waimate, and Waitaki explicitly require landowner agreement before heritage listing private residences in their district plans. These councils understand that managing heritage properties must also consider the community’s economic and social well-being, in line with the principles of the Resource Management Act (RMA).

The Hurunui Council, for instance, has stated that they require owner consent because “the listing of a heritage building may become onerous and costly for the landowner in the future.” This approach demonstrates a more balanced and responsible method of heritage preservation, respecting the rights and well-being of property owners. The practice of imposing heritage listings without consent, as currently done by some councils, does not reflect this balance and can lead to significant economic hardship for property owners.

(Edit/added 2)

Under the current RMA (s6) councils are designating thousands of people’s homes as heritage without the home owner’s consent and without councils compensating the owners for the substantial costs that heritage designation imposes.  Further there is no clear definition of what true national heritage is and councils are designating homes that are run down, heavily modified, and with no little or no heritage value. The RMA needs to be reformed so that councils can only designate a property as heritage with the owner’s consent. If a property is of true national heritage then Heritage NZ should be required to buy the property at full market value and then Heritage NZ can then maintain the property as it chooses. These changes would protect the interests of property owners and ensure only properties of true national significance are heritage protected.