Official Council Document
LIM Report
LIM Report Dunedin | Land Information Memorandum for Dunedin Properties
Quick Answer
A Dunedin LIM Report answers one question: what does Dunedin City Council know about this property? That covers the consent history, the zoning rules applying to the site, the services connected to it, and recorded hazards such as slope instability. It is a disclosure of council-held information, not an inspection.
Unconsented work is the most common problem found on Dunedin properties, and it is invisible until someone reads the council file. The council holds that file, and a Land Information Memorandum releases it — consents, zoning, drainage, rates, and hazards including slope instability. In a district characterised by student rental housing, Victorian and Edwardian heritage stock and hillside property, the gap between what exists on site and what the council approved is worth closing before settlement, not after.
Key Facts
Location
Dunedin
Online Delivery
Delivered online via email
What Is This Document
A Land Information Memorandum is a formal statement issued under section 44A of the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987. For a property in Dunedin, that authority is the council. The report is a compilation rather than an investigation: the council sets out what its records show about consents, zoning, rates, services and hazards such as slope instability, as at the date of issue. It carries statutory standing, which is why lenders and solicitors rely on it.
Which Document Do I Need
They answer different questions and most buyers need both.
| Situation | Recommended Document |
|---|---|
| What the council knows. | LIM |
| Who owns the land and what legal interests are registered against it — easements, covenants, mortgages, cross-lease or unit title structures. | Record of title |
| If you are assessing physical condition | Building inspection |
to commission; a LIM records what was consented, not whether the work was done well or has since deteriorated.
What Information Is Included
A Dunedin LIM sets out the consent history for everything built on the site and whether each consent was signed off; the district plan zoning and overlays that determine what may be done with the land; rating information; the services official records; hazard entries — for this district usually slope instability, coastal erosion, flooding on the harbour flats and sea-level rise; and any outstanding requisitions or notices.
Together that is the regulatory position of the property.
Why People Order
Because the cost of not knowing is asymmetric.
A LIM that discloses nothing confirms the position and costs a few hundred dollars.
A LIM never ordered on a Dunedin property with unconsented work, an outstanding the council requisition or a slope instability notation can cost tens of thousands after settlement — and by then there is no conditional clause left to rely on.
Real World Use Cases
A solicitor acting on a Dunedin purchase requests the LIM to advise on conditions and finds an open building consent from a 2019 alteration.
A buyer comparing two Dunedin properties orders both and proceeds with the one whose file is clean.
An owner planning to extend checks the overlays before engaging an architect.
A purchaser of student rental housing confirms the services official records match what the listing described.
Council & Property Context
It maintains the property file, processes building and resource consents, and issues the LIM. A university city market with a large student rental sector and extensive heritage housing. That local context shapes what appears on a Dunedin LIM: slope instability, coastal erosion, flooding on the harbour flats and sea-level rise are the hazard categories most likely to be recorded, and the district's housing stock — student rental housing, Victorian and Edwardian heritage stock and hillside property — determines the kind of consent history you should expect to see. A Dunedin LIM reflects that district's records specifically; it does not carry information held for any other district.
Common Mistakes
Treating the LIM as the whole of due diligence rather than one third of it.
It does not assess condition and does not show ownership.
Then there is the Dunedin-specific trap: assuming hazard information is complete because the property has never been affected. official records what it knows, and recording has become considerably fuller since October 2025 — an older report may simply predate it.
When Not Sufficient
What a Dunedin LIM omits: legal ownership and registered interests, which sit on the title; physical condition, which needs an inspection; market value, which needs a valuation; and any work done without the council involvement, which by definition left no record. Each gap is closed by a different document, and on most purchases all three are worth having.
How To Order
Start with the address. Select residential or commercial, add Fast Track Processing if you are working to a date, and complete the order. We obtain the official record and deliver the finished report by email. If you have a deadline, tell us when you order and we will confirm whether it is achievable before you commit.
Turnaround & Delivery
A LIM Report for a Dunedin property is typically delivered within 15 working days of your order being confirmed. Need it sooner? Add Fast Track Processing for NZ$299 and your order moves to the front of the queue, with delivery targeted within 10 working days. Complex property files or busy periods can occasionally add time, so if you are working to an unconditional date or an auction, order early — or add Fast Track Processing to keep your timeline safe.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a Dunedin LIM cover land stability and slope risk?
Where the council holds it. Slope instability is recorded as a special land feature, and on hillside sites it can carry consent conditions or restrictions on further building. A LIM discloses the council record; a geotechnical report is the separate engagement that assesses the ground itself.
Does a Dunedin LIM cover coastal erosion and sea-level rise?
Where the council holds that information, yes. Coastal councils increasingly map erosion setbacks and inundation zones, and those overlays can restrict what may be built or rebuilt on a site. The LIM discloses what the council knows — it is not a coastal engineering assessment of the property.
What should an investor check on a Dunedin LIM?
Consent status for any conversions or added bedrooms, which is where rental properties most often diverge from the official record. Unconsented conversions affect insurance, lending and your ability to let the property lawfully, and the obligation to resolve them transfers with ownership.
Does a Dunedin LIM show heritage listings and restrictions?
Yes, where the council holds them. Heritage scheduling and character overlays appear in the district plan information, and they materially affect what can be altered, demolished or extended. On older Dunedin housing stock this is one of the first sections to read.
Should I still get a building inspection if I have a Dunedin LIM?
Yes. They answer different questions. The LIM shows what the council consented; an inspection shows the physical condition of what was built. A well-constructed unconsented extension passes an inspection and still becomes your problem.
What happens if a Dunedin LIM shows unconsented work?
The obligation to resolve it passes to you on settlement. The council can require regularisation or removal, regularisation is not always achievable, and unconsented work affects insurance and future resale. While your offer is still conditional you have options; afterwards you do not.
Order Your Dunedin LIM Report
Enter the Dunedin address and we will obtain the full Dunedin City Council record for the property. Residential NZ$1,299. Commercial NZ$2,499. Fast Track Processing NZ$299.
Get Your LIM Report - DunedinProperty Records Team
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