Property Accountants

Development contributions are proposed to increase in Auckland to frankly non-viable levels from a development perspective, especially for affordable or middle-end houses. The following graphic shows before and after the proposed costs.Auckland Council asserts that development fees have no impact on house prices, claiming that high development contributions do not influence housing costs because developers do not pass these ... Continue reading 

I’m often asked, “What do you look for when buying properties?”Here are some of my tips.Know your strategyWork out your property strategy based on your long-term goals and your household situation. For example, are you looking to build a buy-to-hold portfolio that will provide cashflow from rental income? Are you an experienced investor looking to develop and build houses? ... Continue reading 

With the trust tax rate expected to increase from 33% to 39% on 1 April 2024, now is the time to consider declaring dividends for any companies owned by trusts. Declaring a dividend before 31 March 2024 means there will only be 5% “top-up” tax payable (i.e. the difference between the company tax rate of 28% and the current trust ... Continue reading 

Everyone likes more money in their back pocket, and we’re about to get a few extra dollars to try and counteract the effect of inflation. The coalition government recently announced in their budget that there would be a shift in the tax rate thresholds for individuals from 31 July 2024. Not a moment too soon. For years we’ve been suffering the ... Continue reading 

No matter what type of business you run (retail, hospitality, commercial rental, professional services, or product manufacturing), it is important to manage your cashflow. Many businessowners focus on the profit made for the last financial year and use this as an indicator of whether or not their business is succeeding. However, profit is only one part of the successful business ... Continue reading 

Are you interested in investing in property but find yourself locked out due to the high buy-in costs or the recent debt-to-income (DTI) restrictions?  Joint ownership of property may be a path worth exploring to get in the game and ensure you don’t miss out on the next growth cycle. This approach can leverage the collective purchasing power of ... Continue reading 

Main Home Exemption and Residential Exclusion - understanding IRD's stance on frequent disposals of family homesSelling your home is often one of the most significant financial transactions an individual undertakes. Fortunately, New Zealand tax law provides valuable exemptions which can shield profits from tax – primarily the main home exclusion to the bright-line test and the ‘residential exclusion’ to other ... Continue reading 

Filing tax returns for trusts is becoming more complicated, and trustees need to be aware of this. From the 2022 financial year onwards (i.e. year ending 31 March 2022), additional information must be included in a trust’s tax returns.  None of this is particularly difficult, but gathering the information the IRD requires is going to be more time consuming than ... Continue reading 

The Reserve Bank (RBNZ) surprised at their recent Official Cash Rate review on the 29th of November with their adoption of a relatively hawkish tone and the suggestion that we may not have seen the end to cash rate increases. They increased their own projection for the OCR for the seventh time over the last two years, although I suspect ... Continue reading 

When most people think of insurance, they think about the cost. I guess it's because you see the premium evaporating from your bank account every month. More critically, in these present times, it's tough – what I call the "everything crisis" (the cost of living, healthcare, education, housing – you name it, it's a crisis). It sounds scary, right? ... Continue reading