About
What is Over the Fence?
Over the Fence puts every resource consent in New Zealand on one map — free to search, filter and explore, with no login and nothing to pay.
When something is built, subdivided, cleared or changed near you, it usually starts with a resource consent. Councils publish this activity, but it’s buried in monthly PDFs and clunky search pages that are hard to read and impossible to see at a glance. Over the Fence gathers those public lists, places each one on a map, and presents the plain facts in a way you can actually use.
It’s genuinely free. No account, no paywall, no ads, no tracking. Over the Fence is a public-interest project — if it’s useful to you, that’s the point.
How it’s built
Every month, for each council we cover:
- We read the published list. We use the council’s own publicly published consent list — the document intended for public distribution — not bulk-scraped private search pages.
- We geocode each address using LINZ’s open address data, so every consent lands in the right place on the map.
- We categorise it in plain English. We translate each council’s description into one of our own simple categories — new dwelling, subdivision, earthworks, tree work, land use and so on — so the map legend means something.
- We keep it current. The lists change monthly, and so does Over the Fence. Each consent carries the month its data is “as of”.
Data & privacy
We’re deliberate about what we store and show. The guiding rule is simple: facts only.
- We store facts, not people. Address, application type, our category, dates, status and the council’s consent reference. We never collect or store applicant or agent names or contact details.
- We don’t republish council text. We read each council’s description only to work out our own category — we never show their wording back to you.
- We attribute everything. Each consent shows which council it came from and the month it’s current as of.
Over the Fence is a monthly snapshot for general interest — it is not an official council source. Always confirm details with the relevant council before relying on them.
Who it’s for
Neighbours keeping an eye on the street. Buyers and homeowners weighing up an area. Builders, planners and tradespeople tracking activity. Journalists and researchers looking for patterns. Anyone who’s ever wondered “what’s going up over there?”
Common questions
Is it really free?
Yes. There’s no account, no subscription and no paywall. You can browse, search and use the map without signing up for anything.
Which areas are covered?
We’re starting with Auckland and adding councils over time. Each council that publishes a suitable public list can be added. Check the map for what’s live now.
How current is the data?
Councils publish monthly, and we refresh on the same cadence. Every consent is labelled with the month its information is current as of.
A consent isn’t on the map — why?
Only consents we can place to an address appear on the map. If an address can’t be geocoded, the consent still shows in the list view but not as a point. Some very recent consents may not appear until the next monthly update.
Can I use the data in my own tool?
There’s a simple API for “nearest consents to a point” lookups. Email us and we’ll sort you out with a key.
I think something is wrong.
We do our best, but parsing council documents isn’t perfect. If something looks off, let us know and we’ll take a look. For anything official, always check directly with the council.