Rates & fees
Rates are the main way residents fund the council. Each year an independent regulator (IPART) sets a 'rate peg' — the maximum percentage the council can lift its total rates income. Councils can also apply to IPART for a 'special rate variation' (SRV) to raise more. Here's the current position for Ballina, how it compares across NSW, and the things that actually change your bill.
New to these terms? Read them in plain English
- Rate peg
- The cap on how much a council's TOTAL rates income can rise this year.
- Core peg
- The rate peg before the population top-up — the part driven by rising costs.
- Population factor
- An extra slice of the rate peg for fast-growing councils.
- Special Rate Variation (SRV)
- Permission for a council to raise rates by more than the peg.
- Land valuation
- Your land's value, set by the state, used to split the rates bill between properties.
- Pensioner rebate
- A discount on rates for eligible pensioners.
- Domestic waste charge
- A separate annual fee for your bins — NOT part of the rate peg.
- IPART
- Sets the rate peg and reviews council pricing.
- 3.8%Set by IPART — the cap on the council's total general-rates income for 2025–26. It caps total income, not your individual bill.
- 2026–27 onwards — approved special rate variation
- General rates rise 6.0% a year for four years (2026–27 to 2029–30)In June 2026 IPART approved a permanent special rate variation for Ballina: about 6% each year for four years (roughly 26.25% cumulative), made up of the annual rate peg (the council estimated ~3.25% for 2026–27) plus an extra 2.75%. The council said it is to address an asset-renewal shortfall on roads, stormwater, footpaths, open space, sports fields and buildings.
- What the SRV means for an average bill
- About $346 more a year by 2029–30The council estimated the average residential ratepayer would pay about $346 more per year by 2029–30 — roughly $166 more than under the rate peg alone. Your own bill depends on your land value.
- What the peg / SRV caps
- Total rates income — not your billIt doesn't cap the domestic waste charge, which is separate.
- Why your bill can still change more (or less)
- Land revaluations shift bills between propertiesYour share moves with your land value relative to other properties (NSW Valuer General).
- Overdue interest (2025–26)
- 10.5% per annumA NSW-wide statutory maximum set annually by the state government under the Local Government Act, applied by every council to overdue rates instalments.
- Concessions
- Eligible pensioners can receive a rebateCheck eligibility with the council.
The rate peg (and the approved special rate variation) limit the council's total rates income, not each household's bill. How your individual rates change depends mostly on how your land value moved relative to other properties at the latest revaluation. The SRV figures above are the council's estimates as approved by IPART; confirm the year's actual rate in the world with the council.
Sources — check it yourself
Figures are current as at the dates shown and may change — always confirm with the linked source. See the notice at the bottom of the page for full details and how to report a correction.