• Banks usually won’t lend until you can insure the property. • Insurance covers catastrophic events—fires, floods, earthquakes. • If you can’t insure, you can’t settle. You could lose your deposit. Imagine signing and going unconditional. Then paying a big deposit, only to discover you can't get insurance cover. Your lender freezes funds. You’ve already committed, but now there’s no mortgage, no insurance. Legally, you must settle. Commercially, you’re stuck. In New Zealand, this scenario is more than possible. Councils rezone land. A building once classified “residential” might shift to “lifestyle” or “coastal erosion risk.” Insurers take note. They may exclude insurance cover if...

30 June, 2025

Introduction: Picture this: You've found the perfect house, the one that ticks all the boxes - the dream home you've been searching for. But wait! Before you get carried away with visions of cozy nights by the fireplace, there's something you need to know. Unconsented works can turn your dream into a financial nightmare, potentially costing you hundreds of thousands of dollars. In this article, we'll explore the risks involved and offer you valuable advice on navigating this tricky situation. Unconsented Works and Their Impact: Unconsented works refer to any additions or alterations made to a property without the proper council approval. A...

02 November, 2023

Original Source - ONEROOF.CO.NZ     -   19 July 2023 Article repurposed for our blog. ANALYSIS: Each month, I / Tony Alexander conduct five surveys among my 31,000 subscribers of ONEROOF to gain firsthand insights into the economy, particularly the housing market. This week, I ran a survey of mortgage brokers with the assistance of mortgages.co.nz, and the results are quite interesting. According to the survey, a net 62% of brokers have reported seeing an increase in first home buyers in the market. This is the highest result since June 2020 when a record net 79% of brokers reported more young buyers. Despite rising...

12 October, 2023

Need a conveyancing quote? We Kiwis love the idea of owning our own homes, which is probably one of the main reasons why our property market is such a hotly contested one, as people at all stages in life jostle for a place on the property ladder.  In most of our cases, our homes will likely be our single most expensive asset – in fact, the purchase or sale of a residential property is probably the biggest, most important financial transaction most of us will ever make. A Conveyancing Quote for your NZ Property Transaction Our conveyancing lawyers at Auckland law firm, Quay...

30 September, 2019