Accommodation Benefit rates

Region	Rate	Estimated rate from 1 April 2018
Auckland	$40	$60
Cambridge	$40	$54
Carterton	$39.50	No change
Dannevirke	$21.50	No change
Dargaville	$34	No change
Featherston	$28	No change
Feilding	$36	No change
Foxton	$28.50	No change
Gisborne	$40	No change
Greytown	$40	No change
Hamilton	$40	$49.50
Hastings	$40	$45
Havelock North	$40	$41
Hawera	$32	No change
Hawke's Bay	$40	$41
Huntly	$36	No change
Kaitaia	$33	No change
Kapiti	$40	$57.50
Katikati	$40	$50.50
Kerikeri	$40	$41
Levin	$31	No change
Marton	$22	No change
Masterton	$33.50	No change
Matamata	$40	$45
Morrinsville	$40	$48.50
Mount Maunganui	$40	$41
Napier	$40	$46.50
New Plymouth	$40	$52.50
Northland	$40	$41
Opotiki	$23.50	No change
Otaki	$40	$43
Otorohanga	$28.50	No change
Paeroa	$40	No change
Palmerston North	$40	$40.50
Paparoa	$40	$41
Putaruru	$25.50	No change
Rawene	$40	$41
Rotorua	$39.50	No change
Stratford	$31.50	No change
Taumarunui	$21.50	No change
Taupo	$40	$45
Tauranga	$40	$58.50
Te Aroha	$40	$41
Te Awamutu	$40	$47.50
Te Kuiti	$31	No change
Te Puke	$40	No change
Thames	$40	$45
Tokoroa	$19	No change
Turangi	$24.50	No change
Waihi	$36.50	No change
Waipawa	$24.50	No change
Waipukurau	$29.50	No change
Wairoa	$22.50	No change
Waitara	$39.50	No change
Warkworth (Puhoi)	$40	$60
Wellington	$40	$60
Wellsford	$40	$41
Whakatane	$40	$44.50
Whanganui	$27	No change
Whangarei	$40	$43.50
Whitianga	$40	$49
Woodville	$29.50	No change

Region	Rate	Estimated rate from 1 April 2018
Arrowtown	$40	$60
Ashburton	$40	$46.50
Balclutha	$33.50	No change
Blenheim	$40	$41.50
Christchurch	$40	$60
Cromwell	$40	No change
Dunedin	$40	$51
Gore	$22.50	No change
Greymouth	$40	$42
Hokitika	$31.50	No change
Invercargill	$26.50	No change
Kaikoura	$40	No change
Motueka	$40	$49.50
Nelson	$40	$51.50
Oamaru	$37	No change
Picton	$40	No change
Queenstown	$40	$60
Timaru	$40	$41.50
Waimate	$31	No change
Wakefield	$40	$43
Wanaka	$40	$60
West Coast	$40	$41
Westport	$40	No change

If where you live isn't listed in the 'North Island' and 'South Island' tables, you'll currently get a rural rate of $40 a week.

From 1 April 2018, it's estimated that the rural rate will increase to $41 a week.

If you're a sole parent, we work out how much Accommodation Benefit you can get by using the same calculation we would for Accommodation Supplement.

This is based on:

• the Area you live in
• your accommodation costs
• your income
• your cash assets.

You also need to be paying at least:

• $105 a week for rent or board, or
• $126 a week for your home ownership costs, eg mortgage, rates, insurance.

The most you can get for an Accommodation Benefit is:

If you have:	And you live in:
	Area 1	Area 2	Area 3	Area 4
1 child	$160	$125	$75	$55
2+ children	$225	$165	$120	$75

Changes from 1 April 2018

From 1 April 2018, if you're getting an Accommodation Benefit, this payment may go up.

Places in New Zealand are allocated into 4 different Accommodation Supplement Areas based on their local housing costs, with Area 1 having the highest housing costs and Area 4 having the lowest.

From 1 April 2018:

• the maximum rates for all 4 Areas will go up
• some places will move into a different Accommodation Supplement Area.

This means, if you're getting an Accommodation Benefit:

• it may go up regardless of where you live
• if you live in a place that moves to a different Area, it could go up significantly.