Sent: Monday, 13 June 2022 3:47 pm
Subject: Information request - vacant residential sections and servicing of debt
I refer to your email of 27 May 2022 regarding vacant residential sections and servicing of ratepayer debt, and provide the following information:
- How vacant residential sections are there in Rotorua?
518 rated as ‘vacant residential’ - What is the current cost of servicing the ratepayer debt of $297m?
Council’s net debt is currently $271m with an annual interest expense of $6.7m
The below graph provides a comparison between total debt versus cost of servicing debt on an annual basis. The graph illustrates that during the last 9 years, the total cost of debt servicing has reduced from an annual cost of $9m to $6.7m. This means our ratepayers are paying less in debt servicing costs now than they were in 2013 and the levels are comparable to 2020 when Councils debt was $114m.
Note: Debt servicing includes finance charges and not principal repayment.
