LIM Reports and earthquake related information

Today the Council's  Answers to questions raised at recent Council community meetings webpage was updated with information about the information to be placed on LIM reports. All of that information is reproduced below. Please remember this information may change over time so check the Council website to make sure you have the most recent information.

NOTE: If you had a yellow or red card placed on your property the third section especially applies to you.
What information on earthquake land damage will be placed on the LIM report?   Council is bound to advise LIM applicants about special characteristics of the land. This includes effects of the earthquake, including liquefaction and subsidence. We have two sources of information - the Tonkin & Taylor reports, Land Information New Zealand report. We will reflect the results of these reports in the LIMs.
For properties undergoing land remediation works - does this go on the LIM and if so, when will it be removed?   We believe that remediation of land bestows upon that land a ‘special characteristic’ which is required to be reported on in a LIM. Where land is directly remediated (such as ground compaction methods) then this should be reported in LIMs as that ground has undergone specific specialised treatment. Where land is within a perimeter treatment zone (the large dams intended to prevent lateral spreading) then this too should be reported as the land will be unlikely to suffer lateral spreading in any further events – again a special characteristic is bestowed on that land. We believe reporting of this to be an advantage for property owners, as it informs potential buyers what works have been undertaken to counter any remarks about land damage including liquefaction (including lateral spreading) and or subsidence. These remarks would remain on the LIM permanently.
Will there be any reference to earthquake damage, house rebuilding or repairs on the LIM?   If the Council has issued a notice - such as a red or yellow placard on your property then that is a notice issued by Council and absolutely must be reported in the LIM - we are bound by legislation on that. If works or investigation takes place and the notice is removed then we should have that information supplied to us so we can also report that in the LIM - it will serve to 'set aside' the original notice.
If a new house is built then we will record the building consents and any other notices or certificates associated with that. We would not make comment on any destroyed structures that were demolished. We will also need to make comment on what we know about the land.
If I have to make only small earthquake repairs, will this go on my LIM?If the repairs did not require a building consent then it is unlikely they would be included in the LIM. But for homes where a notice had been issued, e.g. a yellow placard, then we would advise that owners forward any details of repairs be  included in the LIM.
Can council provide updated LIM report if we want to buy a house somewhere else?   Yes. Each LIM is a unique document that relates the information that Council has about property. As new information comes to hand we update the information systems that we use to manage the LIM process.

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