Finance and funding general manager Robert Mackway-Jones said the board was set to save $3.4 million in 2010-11, $732,000 ahead of budget.
The board initially hoped to save about $4 million annually through the controversial cuts to helping the elderly with chores such as cleaning, shopping and food preparation.
Since March, the board has reduced household assistance by about 3000 hours a week in Otago and Southland.
A regional breakdown on the hours was not available.
Aside from a few appeals and reviews to complete in Otago, the cuts were now complete.
Last week, the Otago Daily Times reported rest-home subsidy costs had not tracked down as planned, making them the board's "major expense problem", chief executive Brian Rousseau said, of an overrun of more than $4 million.
Mr Mackway-Jones maintained the housework cuts were "unrelated" to the fact rest-home admissions had not decreased as planned, despite the board's efforts.
Nevertheless, new rest-home admissions were being audited by the South Island Shared Services Agency Ltd to find reasons for the admissions.
Results are expected next month.
"I'm interested to know if there is any consistency for the reasons on admissions to rest homes. [Rest-home use] is not increasing from historic levels; it's just that the decreases have levelled off and I'd like to know why," Mr Mackway-Jones said.
Funding and programmes to keep people at home were set to increase in the new year.
Some of the money saved on domestic assistance was being directed towards the new programmes, but Mr Mackway-Jones declined to say how much.
New programmes aimed at keeping people at home were different from the help with cleaning and other chores that had been cut, he said.
