Latest updates

23 April 2026

Trust eSpeaking - Autumn 2026

In the Autumn 2026 edition of Trust eSpeaking: Taxing the business income of charities - Inland Revenue proposal unlikely to proceed; Trustees taking on liabilities of the trust - Can they be held personally responsible; Death, property and prenups - The Rimmer case has changed the rules - for the meantime.

2 September 2024

Trust eSpeaking

In the Spring 2024 issue of Trust eSpeaking: Contracting out agreements for relationships late in life: A wise move as financial affairs are more complex; The plight of stepchildren: Non-traditional family structures can result in unfair estate outcomes; Will-making when you have overseas assets: Some key considerations.

18 December 2023

Rural eSpeaking - Summer 2023

Inside the Summer 2023 issues of Rural eSpeaking: National, ACT and New Zealand First coalition: What can agriculture expect?; Three Waters and Resource Management Act 1991 replacement legislation: To be repealed; Over the fence: Family home v homestead: implications for relationship property – Road user charges: when to pay them? – Casual employees v seasonal workers.

7 November 2023

Property Speaking - Spring 2023

In the Spring 2023 edition of Property Speaking: What happens if your builder goes bust? Choose carefully; Alternative methods to sell your property: Auction and tender overview; Property briefs: First Home Partner scheme on hold; Council delays for property developers; short-term accommodation - take care; Election impact on property issues.

20 August 2023

Trust eSpeaking - Spring 2023

Inside the Spring 2023 issue of Trust eSpeaking: Decision in ‘Alphabet case’ could change succession landscape – significant issues raised; Refusing an inheritance – what options does a trustee have?; Polyamorous relationships – Supreme Court confirms that the Property (Relationships) Act can apply.

4 July 2023

Property Speaking - Winter 2023

Inside the Winter 2023 issue of Property Speaking, our property law newsletter:

• Kāinga Ora First Home Partner scheme: a co-ownership option
• Owning a heritage building: a burden or a boon?
• Property briefs: Unit titles legislation updates – First Home Grants thresholds increase – Loan to value restrictions eased

20 April 2023

Property Speaking - Autumn 2023

In the Autumn 2023 edition of Property Speaking, our property law newsletter: Storm damage to properties: For landlords, tenants and buyers; Subdivision consents: Recent changes to planning rules; Property briefs: Update on legislation – Changes to LIM information – Replacement of the Resource Management Act 1991.

21 February 2023

Purchasing a property - Should you rely on a report supplied by the vendor?

If you are purchasing a property we strongly advise you accept the additional cost and obtain your own LIM and builder's reports rather than rely on any reports supplied by the vendor. We give the reasons why.

8 December 2022

Land Covenants - How can irrelevant covenants be removed from the land?

It is common in New Zealand for properties to be subject to restrictive land covenants.

A land owner affected by a covenant may apply to the Court under the Property Law Act to have the Covenant removed from the affected titles. The Court may consider various factors when deciding whether to grant the application.

18 August 2022

Trusts eSpeaking - Spring 2022

Inside the Spring 2022 edition of Trust eSpeaking:

• Trusts Act 2019 also affects executors and administrators of wills: mandatory and default duties explained
• Wearing two hats in a family protection claim: get independent advice
• When Lotto winners fall out: The importance of who gets what

22 June 2022

Property Speaking - Winter 2022

Inside the Winter 2022 edition of Property Speaking: Co-owning a property: Think about having a property sharing agreement; Land covenants: Rules on how you can use your land; Property briefs: Healthy homes standards have changed - Rent relief for commercial tenants - Rising interest rates causing anxiety.

25 May 2022

Change to Government assistance for first home buyers

With the ever-increasing unaffordability in the New Zealand property market the Government has recently announced, via the 2022 Budget, changes on how it can assist first home buyers entering the property market.

13 April 2022

Relying on Solicitor’s Approval Clauses

We often receive Agreements for the sale of a property which include a clause making the sale conditional on the purchaser’s or the seller’s solicitor’s approval of the Agreement. Clients often mistakenly believe that this condition allows them to withdraw from the purchase or sale if they have misunderstood the Agreement or something is wrong with the Agreement or, even if they change their minds, by instructing their solicitor to withhold approval.

2 March 2022

Changes to the Standard Agreement for Sale and Purchase - Release of the 11th edition

The standard Agreement used for the sale and purchase of real estate in NZ was updated on 8 February 2022 with the release of the 11th edition of the Agreement. This latest edition has several changes.

10 October 2021

Assisting a family member to purchase a house?

Are you thinking about helping a family member by contributing towards their first home purchase? What is the best way to do this? The answer depends on your circumstances.

30 August 2021

Trust eSpeaking - Spring 2021

Inside the Spring 2021 edition of Trust eSpeaking: Buying your first home using KiwiSaver funds: But you’re already the trustee of a trust; Estate laws due for a shake-up; Britney Spears’ conservatorship: Could it happen in New Zealand?

18 November 2020

Farm Tenancies, Landlord Responsibilities and Healthy Homes

Farm owners providing accommodation to employees must comply with the Residential Tenancies Act 1986. If you’re a farmer and a landlord you’d be forgiven for feeling the latest changes to the Residential Tenancies Act might seem daunting.

1 October 2020

Selling your property? Five key things to be aware of

There are a few traps for the unwary when selling a property. Here are five things you need to be aware of to avoid a costly mistake.

24 August 2020

Buying and selling a house under COVID-19 levels 2 and 3

The rules around sale and purchase of real estate during COVID-19 alert levels two and three.

25 June 2020

Agreement for sale and purchase of land must be signed by all trustees

When a trust is selling or buying property, if the agreement is to be legally binding without any argument being raised otherwise, it is important that all the trustees are named in the agreement and all the trustees sign it.

10 June 2020

Property Speaking - Autumn 2020

Adapting the agreements can help property developers - Helps mitigate risk; Agreement for Sale and Purchase of Real Estate - 10th edition contains significant changes for buyers and sellers; Property briefs: Update on Overseas Investments Act 2005; Refresher on privacy rights for tenants; Proposed residential tenancy changes.

14 May 2020

The 3 most common reasons a Will can be challenged

Three common reasons why a Will can be challenged.

16 April 2020

Residential Tenancies & Covid-19

This article provides an explanation of the current amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (the Act) and the potential legal effect of the amendments to the Act and the Lockdown to your residential tenancies.

27 February 2020

Trust eSpeaking - Autumn 2020

Inside the Autumn 2020 edition of Trust eSpeaking: Succession law in New Zealand - Law Commission to review conflicting inheritance laws; Enduring powers of attorney - How many people should you name as attonrys?; Claims on an estate - How much can a disinherited child expect?

13 June 2019

Deed of Family Arrangement

A Deed of Family Arrangement (DOFA) is a document recording the distribution of an estate where this will not be made in accordance with the terms of the Will or the laws of intestacy.

26 November 2017

The Deposit

A deposit under an agreement for sale and purchase is normally paid by the purchaser to show he or she is genuine in his or her desire to purchase the property - the purchaser could lose the deposit if he or she failed to complete the transaction once legally committed to do so.

2 August 2015

Rights of Way - rights and responsiblities

An easement is the right to use someone else’s land for a particular purpose. The 4th Schedule to the Land Transfer Regulations sets out the standard terms that apply to easements of right of way, rights to convey and drain water, rights to drain sewage and rights to convey electricity, telecommunications, computer media and gas created from 2002 onwards.

15 December 2014

Buying Land - The Value Of A Lim Report

It is a common misconception that you don’t need a LIM report when you buy bare land, or when the house and buildings have been signed off by Council. However, the value of a LIM report goes much further than that.

15 December 2014

Forcing The Sale Of Property Owned With Others

28 November 2019

Problems before settlement - what are the buyer's options?

What can you do if you’re buying a property and find out there’s a problem before the settlement date - for example, there is a tenant in the property when the agreement says the property will be vacant, or the seller hasn’t done fencing work which they agreed to do? Are you able to refuse to settle until the issue is “sorted”?

10 October 2019

Skimpy document prepared without legal advice legally binding

It’s not uncommon for documents which have been prepared without legal advice to result in disputes about their interpretation, or even disputes as to whether the parties intended them to be legally binding.