Thinking of Moving to Ōtautahi Christchurch?
QV’s House Price Index March 2023 data revealed that Christchurch, Selwyn and Waimakariri properties continue to be, on average, cheaper to buy or rent than many other New Zealand towns and cities. For example, while the average house prices for Christchurch and Selwyn were $742,000 and $819,000 respectively, house-hunters in Wellington and Auckland could expect […]
Tips for entering a Commercial Lease
In this article we set out our top tips for tenants who are entering into new commercial leases. It is very important to get this right from the outset. If you are a landlord instead, then please refer to our separate article “10 tips for landlords entering into a commercial lease”. 1. Focus on the important […]
Buying a Lifestyle Block in Canterbury
Owning a lifestyle block can offer the perfect blend of space, tranquility, and freedom, away from the hustle and bustle of Christchurch city life. There are plenty of advantages to buying a lifestyle block – but there are also plenty of things to think about before you make that life changing decision. Here are the […]
Natural Hazards Insurance Act 2023
From the 1 July 2024, the Natural Hazards Insurance Act 2023 (NHI Act) replaces and modernises the Earthquake Commission Act 1993 (EQC Act). In line with the new legislation, the Earthquake Commission Toka Tū Ake (EQC) has become the Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake (NHC). This change marks a significant step forward in how […]
Developing or refurbishing buildings for lease
An ‘agreement to design, build and lease’, is an agreement between a landlord and a tenant that provides for the tenant to lease a premises (or part of a premises) from the landlord following design and construction of the premises by the landlord. For the tenant it will ensure a purpose-built facility (save for any […]
A Landlord’s Options if a Tenant Breaches Their Lease
It can be very stressful if your tenant has breached the terms of their lease, and you need to re-take possession of your property. It is important that the proper legal process is followed, a landlord who doesn’t take the right steps could expose themselves to a range of unintended consequences. This article sets out […]
LIM and title reviews compulsory for ANZ customers
In short the changes mean that lawyers are now obligated to review and report to the bank on the property’s title (and sometimes also the LIM report), even if the customer doesn’t feel that this is necessary. The new rules also mean that offers of finance from ANZ may not be truly unconditional until ANZ […]
Protecting Against Contractor Collapse
While relatively uncommon, it is a reality across the building industry and the threat is increased in difficult market conditions. Whether you are engaging builders for a large commercial project or for your first home there are security protections that you can employ in order to help mitigate some of the risk. This article explores […]
Due Diligence When Purchasing a Commercial Property
In this article, we set out some tips to allow yourself an opportunity to work out if a commercial property is right for you before you are locked into a purchase. We recommend that the sale and purchase agreement includes a robust due diligence clause if you want an opportunity to fully investigate every aspect […]
Commercial property as an investment option
Tip 1: The Location You need to have a good understanding of the area in which the property is located as you need to consider the types of tenants that you might attract or want to retain. Is it in a well-established area where there is already good leasing stock? Perhaps it is an up-and-coming […]
Commercial Property Tender Process
Implied terms When a party makes a formal request for tenders (the offer) and that request is met with a complying tender bid (the acceptance) then a ‘process contract’ is formed completely separate from the principal agreement for the sale of property or for construction services. When a separate process contract arises there are several […]
The New Purchase Price Allocation Rules
From 1 July 2021 the way that most vendors and purchasers of commercial property enter into agreements for sale and purchase will change, with the introduction of the new “purchase price allocation” (PPA) rules. Under the new rules, with some exceptions, the parties to a commercial property sale and purchase will need to consider the […]
Farm Succession
Prior to the 2000’s, completing farm succession was a reasonably stress free exercise. Modest land values and average farm income, coupled with many of the farm children preferring to seek their opportunities elsewhere in the big city made the pathway for the succeeding farm child/children reasonably smooth. Over the past 20 years however, significant increases […]
Assessing the Seismic Risk of Commercial Buildings
Buildings below 34% NBS are considered to be Earthquake Prone. These buildings will need to be upgraded within the timeframe applying in the Seismic Risk area in which it is located. For example, in a high risk area this means within 7 ½ years of receiving an earthquake prone building notice from the Council. However, […]
10 Tips for Landlords Entering into a Commercial Lease
We’ve separately written about some of the things tenants should consider when entering into a new lease. It is equally important that a landlord takes care when negotiating and preparing a new lease. Here are our top 10 tips for a landlord who is entering into a new lease agreement. 1. Seek advice early We suggest that […]
Deposits When Buying or Selling Property
How much should my deposit be? When buying or selling a property, the deposit amount will be written on the front page of the agreement and will state where it is to be paid – usually to the real estate agent’s trust account once the agreement becomes unconditional. The deposit amount is often 10% of […]
Forestry, Permanent Forests and Climate Change
Forestry has been an important part of the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) since its inception because of the ability of trees (particularly fast growing exotic timber species such as Pinus radiata and Douglas Fir) to quickly store carbon and earn carbon credits. With the current price of carbon sitting at around $75/tonne and predicted to […]
Land covenants – be wary
Mutual covenants The covenants are mutual which means that each owner in the subdivision must both abide by the covenants and ensure that their neighbour abides by them too. Many land covenants contain a clause providing for liquidated damages (i.e. an amount of money) to be payable for every day you are in breach of […]
How to prepare for going to auction
Here’s what you need to know to get yourself ready The use of auctions to sell properties has seen a substantial rise over the last year. Auctions can be exciting but also intimidating, and because the auction process is different from other methods of purchasing property it is important to understand what is involved. Here’s […]
One Property – Multiple Purchasers …What to do?
Back Up Offers A back up offer can be signed by both the vendor and a backup purchaser if there is already a live contract in place provided it is still conditional. Naturally, the vendors want the most favourable deal or other options should the initial contract fall through. This may not necessarily be the […]
Christchurch – a Destination For First Home Buyers
We are seeing an influx of first home buyers from Wellington and Auckland deciding to make the move to Christchurch to get on the property ladder. Young professionals and families are all making the move down south to take advantage of the lower property prices and cost of living in Christchurch. However, unlike Wellington and […]
Recent changes to the Overseas Investment regime
The recent changes replace the emergency notification provisions introduced under urgency in 2020 in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. The changes also streamline aspects of the OIO application process by removing some “lower risk” transactions and by simplifying investor requirements including the “investor test” and benefits tests. One significant change is the introduction of the […]
Payment Claims and Schedules Under The Construction Contracts Act
One of the main purposes of the Construction Contracts Act 2002 (Act) is to facilitate regular and timely payments between parties. The Act provides a standardised mechanism for dealing with payments through its payment claim and payment schedule regime. Amendments to the Act mean the payment claim and payment schedule regime applies to both residential […]
Are your earthquake repairs fully compliant?
While reviewing LIM reports we have come across several instances where building consents have been obtained for earthquake repairs, however a code of compliance certificate hasn’t been issued. This seems to particularly have been the case where a new fireplace has been installed. Before listing your house for sale, it would be prudent to check […]
A new medium-density regime
The Resource Management (Enabling Housing Supply and Other Matters) Amendment Act (Act) gained Royal Assent on 20 December 2021. The Act was only introduced on 19 October 2021 in a joint announcement by the Government and the National opposition. So, the entire parliamentary process lasted one day short of nine weeks. It is fair to […]
7 Considerations for Refinancing
1 – How long have you had your existing mortgage? If you received a cash contribution when you first obtained a mortgage, the bank may require you to pay back some, or all, of those funds if you refinance within a certain period, generally 3 years. Make sure you check the timeframes before applying for […]
The Purchase Price Allocation Rules
In this article we: Why were the PPA rules introduced? The rules were introduced to ensure that vendors and purchasers allocate purchase prices consistently for income tax purposes, and to prevent the practice of “mis-matched” PPAs, where vendors and purchasers often adopted different positions in their tax return for the same transaction. When do the […]
Understanding your lease maintenance and reinstatement requirements
Some ‘repair and maintenance’ obligations are ongoing throughout the entire life of the lease, while other ‘reinstatement’ obligations only kick in when the lease ends. Maintenance obligations during the lease A lease will commonly require a tenant to maintain the premises in the same condition as the premises were in when the lease first commenced (excepting fair […]
Converting a Cross Lease Title to a Freehold Title
What is a cross lease? A cross-lease is a type of property ownership where multiple parties own a single piece of land in undivided shares. Each party has the exclusive right to use specific parts of the land (e.g. your house and garden) and shared rights over other parts (i.e. the shared driveway), as set […]