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10 Year Land Subsidence Report

Ten years of your land's history. In one report. From space.

Land movement is often invisible until it's expensive - cracked foundations, a declined insurance claim, a stalled sale, or a price renegotiated after you've already committed. A LandSure report shows you what the ground has actually done for the past decade, so you find out before you buy, build, insure or sell - not after.

Order Your Report View Sample Report
LandSure 10-Year Land Subsidence Report - page 1 overview: property summary, monitoring points and key finding
Powered by ESA Sentinel-1 satellite data
10+ years of NZ coverage from 2014
NZ Owned
Delivered within 24 hours · expert checked

Why order a report

One report can save you from a very expensive mistake.

Land movement problems rarely show up on a standard building report or a drive-by. By the time they are visible, they are expensive. Here is what a LandSure report actually does for you.

1

Negotiate from a position of knowledge

Buying a property? Use the report to negotiate price, request remediation, or walk away - before you are legally committed. Selling? A clean history report reassures buyers and can help you avoid a last-minute price drop.

2

Avoid a five or six-figure surprise

Underpinning, retaining walls and slope remediation routinely cost tens of thousands of dollars once movement is visible in a property. A report from $345 flags the same movement years earlier, while it still costs nothing to act on.

3

Protect your resale value and cover

Undisclosed ground movement is a liability at your next sale, and can complicate insurance claims down the line. A documented, dated history protects your position either way.

Please read before you buy. LandSure is not a geotechnical engineer, and this report is not analysis, certification or a professional opinion. Think of it as a canary in the coal mine - a satellite data report that flags where the ground may be moving. It is meant to be used alongside your local geotechnical engineer, who knows your area and the differences in the land. InSAR does not work equally well in all land types, so please check that this product is right for you before purchasing.

What does a LandSure report actually look like?

Real pages from the LandSure report on a demonstration property in Raumanga, Whangārei. Every report is a complete InSAR Historical Analysis - this sample runs to 22 pages, including a full data appendix listing all 108 measured points and a dedicated sunlight analysis. Report length adapts to the property's data.

LandSure Land Subsidence Report cover - aerial property view, monitoring point summary and plain-English key finding

Cover & property overview - monitoring-point ratings, worst-point rate and the plain-English key finding.

InSAR movement history chart and monitoring point locations map on aerial imagery

InSAR movement history & locations - ten years of cumulative deformation, each point mapped by number and colour.

Ground movement rate heatmap interpolated across the property

Movement rate heatmap - an interpolated velocity surface over the property and its immediate surrounds.

Surrounding area ground movement - measured points beyond the property boundary

Surrounding area movement - every measured point outside the boundary, labelled and tabled for context.

Movement analysis - annual movement of the worst point and averages by monitoring point

Movement analysis - annual rates, per-point averages and the plain-English classification.

Per-point InSAR movement detail cards on the fixed LandSure screening scale

Per-point movement detail - every monitoring point on the fixed LandSure screening scale.

Terrain, elevation and land capability - slope classes and shaded relief

Terrain, elevation & land capability - mapped slope classes and measured ground elevation.

When will this property get sun - annual sunlight window chart adjusted for terrain

Sunlight analysis - when direct sun reaches and leaves the property across the year, adjusted for local terrain.

Screening classification matrix and methodology under the AGS 2007 framework

Screening classification & methodology - standardised screening under the AGS (2007) framework.

Land and soil context with full data provenance and build chain

Land & soil context and data provenance - site susceptibility factors and how the report was built.

Legal parcel, buildings and water context from LINZ cadastral data

Legal parcel, buildings & water context - cadastral records, building footprints and mapped water features.

Property land essentials - soil, permeability, pH and QMAP geology scales

Property land essentials - rock, soil and QMAP geology on each dataset's own scale.

Screening summary and general next steps

Screening summary & next steps - interpretation, monitoring guidance and data confidence.

Download Full Sample Report (PDF)

Why this matters in New Zealand

New Zealand land doesn't stand still. Most of the time, you can't see it moving.

New Zealand sits on the boundary of the Pacific and Australian tectonic plates. The land is compressed, lifted, sheared and stretched continuously - and it doesn't announce itself until something fails.

Landslides

Heavy rainfall saturating slopes is the leading cause of NZ property damage. Gradual hillside creep often precedes sudden failure by years. InSAR detects the slow movement phase.

Subsidence

The ground beneath a property sinks over time - due to drainage, tree roots, or underlying geology. Foundations crack. Driveways drop. Resale value falls.

Active fault movement

Auckland, Wellington, Kaikoura, Napier. Interseismic deformation accumulates slowly across NZ's fault zones. InSAR measures that background movement; it cannot predict when a fault will rupture.

Coastal slope movement

Properties near the NZ coastline sit on ground that can creep, slump and settle. Our report measures that ground movement. It does not measure shoreline or cliff-edge retreat - we do not offer coastal erosion reporting yet, so contact us if you need erosion data.

Volcanic deformation

The central North Island bulges and subsides with changes to magma bodies underground. InSAR detected Taupo subsidence covering more than 1,400 km2 - invisible to the eye.

441,000+
NZ residential buildings in flood risk zones (NIWA / University of Auckland)
800,000
Landslides triggered by Cyclone Gabrielle (GNS Science mapping, 2023)
12%
Of NZ's total housing value is in flood hazard areas

Sources: NIWA, University of Auckland, Insurance Council of NZ, Knowledge Auckland. Current as of 2024.

We'll be straightforward about what this technology can and can't do.

InSAR is not magic. It is a precise measurement tool with real capabilities and real constraints. Here is a straightforward, traffic-light view of where it excels, where it needs care, and where it is not the right tool.

InSAR is great at

  • Urban and suburban environments - buildings, roads and structures give excellent radar returns
  • Slow movement detection - gradual subsidence, creeping slopes and long-term settlement are exactly what InSAR is built for
  • Large-area screening - quickly identifies movement hotspots across whole properties or corridors
  • Historical trend analysis - 10+ years of data reveals patterns fieldwork would take years to establish
  • Post-event assessment - comparing pre- and post-event movement gives objective dated evidence
  • Stable, open terrain - exposed rock, dry ground and paved surfaces return strong signals

InSAR still works, with care

  • Dense native vegetation - bush and tree cover scatters the radar signal, reducing reliable points in forested areas
  • Steep terrain - very steep slopes change the signal geometry and can create shadow zones behind ridgelines
  • Active earthworks or construction - significant surface change between passes can cause signal loss until the surface stabilises

InSAR is not good when

  • Movement is very rapid or sudden - the 12-day satellite cycle means a sudden large landslide may not be captured until the next pass
  • Standing water is present - flat water returns very little signal, so wetlands or flooded areas may have few or no points

InSAR data does not replace a geotechnical engineer. It gives your geotechnical engineer a 10-year running start.

Where our report indicates movement, elevated risk or uncertainty - we will say so. The "Next Steps" section of every report includes specific referral guidance. We are not in the business of telling people their land is safe when the data suggests otherwise.

Common questions about the report.

Under ideal surface conditions, Under good surface conditions, fitted movement rates are accurate to roughly ±2–5 mm per year along the satellite's line of sight. No field survey can match its 10-year retrospective record — but for absolute levels, conventional survey methods remain the reference.
ESA's Sentinel-1 satellite began collecting data over New Zealand in 2014, so reports can cover up to 10 years of movement history. For sites needing data beyond 2014, we can in some cases access historical data from predecessor satellites (Envisat, ERS) - enquire about extended history options.
Dense native bush or tall trees can reduce the number of reliable measurement points, because radar scatters off vegetation rather than returning cleanly. In these cases we use SBAS processing to increase coverage, and we clearly indicate the point count and signal quality. A low point count does not mean no data - it means we are clear about the confidence level.
Significant surface change between passes can cause temporary signal decorrelation, which usually resolves once the surface stabilises. The report identifies any such gaps or anomalies in the time-series and explains them clearly.
No. LandSure provides displacement data and satellite-based analysis only. We are not licensed geotechnical engineers and the report does not constitute engineering advice or certification. Where the report indicates movement or risk, we recommend engaging a registered geotechnical professional. Think of it as the desk study that tells you exactly where to direct specialist fieldwork.
The data comes from ESA's Sentinel-1 constellation, processed by SatSense (Leeds, UK) - a world-leading InSAR company co-founded by University of Leeds Professors Tim Wright and Andy Hooper. AVANT applies New Zealand-specific geology, hazard records and analysis to produce your final report.
Yes - many buyers order one as part of their own due diligence. The report is issued to you and is for your use only: banks, insurers and councils cannot rely on it, and it will not satisfy any requirement for a certified engineer's report. What it gives you is ten years of measured movement history, so you can decide what questions to ask - and whether to engage a geotechnical engineer - before you commit.
Within 24 hours of order confirmation. Every report is checked by a LandSure team member for the right property, complete data and correct output for quality control before it is sent, so you are never sent an unchecked automated output. Complex large-area professional assessments may take up to 48 hours. You receive a professional PDF with a geo-referenced data file attached.
Yes. SatSense's InSAR dataset spans all of New Zealand — measurement points form only on hard, stable surfaces, updated every 12 days from the Sentinel-1 archive dating back to 2014 - including remote rural, coastal, alpine and urban areas across both islands.
If the data shows concerning movement, the report says so clearly in the Risk Summary and Next Steps sections, and recommends appropriate follow-up - which may include engaging a geotechnical engineer, applying for monitoring, or reviewing your insurance position. We do not soften findings to make a sale.
Yes. We never sell your data, and we never share it beyond what is needed to produce your report - the only third party involved is our InSAR processing partner SatSense (UK), which receives your property coordinates to run the satellite data query. Your name and contact details stay with LandSure, held securely under the Privacy Act 2020.
Yes - and we recommend it for properties with any detected movement. The LandSure InSAR Land Monitoring service (launching soon) provides continuous 12-day monitoring with SMS and email alerts. Properties that start with a historical report can transition seamlessly to active monitoring.