Christchurch residents whose houses have sunk by up to 30 centimetres since the earthquakes say they are confused about who will pay to raise and remediate their land to reduce the risk of flood.
Christchurch City Council has released a report on the long term effects of changing sea levels which predicted many low-lying suburbs will be submerged within the next century.
The report said Sumner, New Brighton, South Shore and Brooklands were likely to be among areas flooded by the rising sea.
Christchurch resident Stephen Bourke said it is not clear whether council, the Earthquake Commission (EQC) or private insurers will take responsibility for raising his house to the new flood level.
The EQC says it is still working to identify properties that have been made vulnerable to flooding because of quake damage and has yet to determine what settlement it will make.
The Insurance Council says that if nothing is done to deal with the increasing threat of sea levels some properties could become undesireable.