For those of you who are worried because you are carrying debt on property, I share my perspective on the impending doom that Covid-19 has wrought upon us. Just remember, people, banks lend on closer to 6:1 mixed median multiples (median house prices: median household incomes) in NZ. They appear to be up to 12:1 but banks don’t lend unless ... More 

With approximately 8000 relationships ending in NZ in 2017 (Statistics NZ), it is hardly surprising that the Family Court is bogged down, and it is taking far too long for people to access the courts in order to resolve relationship property disputes.  As it should be, the Family Court’s priority is the protection of children and related issues. Resolution ... More 

For our property investors the issue of claiming repairs and maintenance as a deductible expense is of major importance because this type of activity is generally the largest cost after interest expenditure when owning a rental property.   Capital improvements are of no immediate or future tax benefit to you as the tax payer because they get "capitalised" and ... More 

A tax amendment for close companies that provide motor vehicles to shareholder-employees has been proposed for the 2018 financial year onwards.OverviewCompanies with five or less shareholders (close companies) that provide their shareholder-employees with a motor vehicle for private use are required to register and pay fringe benefit tax (FBT) for that benefit, subject to certain exemptions. Sole traders and ... More 

As you may be aware, there is a new law that requires all tenanted homes to be insulated by 1 July 2019. Anyone who owns rental property must ensure their properties are insulated to the required standard by this date. At GRA we’ve been getting a lot of questions about whether the cost of insulating a rental property is ... More 

It is a requirement in New Zealand for parties to provide their IRD numbers when buying or selling real estate (whether as an individual or through another entity such as a company or trust). Normally this does not pose any sort of problem. However, there will be significant issues if you are selling a property that has been generating ... More 

Lately I've been spending lots of time writing my new book. One of the chapters concentrates on how to build wealth. Do you put your hard-earned coins into property, shares, bonds or something else that is going to grow your wealth?  The decision we make, whilst ultimately a personal one, is influenced greatly by historic events that have affected ... More 

It’s been an interesting start to 2017 with a much tighter credit market than what we have seen for most of the last decade. While the majority of the media have been concentrating on the fact that the market seems to have slowed since the 40% deposit rule introduction, I put more down to banks themselves pulling back in ... More 

At Property Ventures we are increasing our focus on new builds as investments because we see tremendous advantages from a financing perspective. Not only do investors get pristine new and low maintenance properties in better areas, they get the benefit of 80% LVRs and tax advantages from higher chattel depreciation.   These smart tax and finance benefits make investing ... More