News and views

Having recently clocked the big 2-0 in my legal career, I started doing a bit of a recreational, back-of-the-envelope tally of how many property transactions I’ve clocked up during that time – I got into the many thousands very quickly, felt old, and stopped.

Subcontractors owed money are to get better protection for payment for work done in changes to the Construction Contracts Act approved by Government, Building and Construction Minister Dr Nick Smith announced.

Spring, at last, has sprung and with it has come the lambs, the blooms, the longer days – and, of course, the seasonal warming up of the property market. As happens at this time of year, my desk has seen a marked increase in conveyancing files adorning it of late.

A recent High Court decision (Johnson & Ors v Auckland Council) develops the law around the extent of a buyer’s liability for failing to complete proper due diligence checks when buying a leaky home. The case shows that the compensation paid to a buyer will be reduced if the buyer does not take adequate care when deciding to buy, even if the Council has been negligent.

The Building Amendment Act 2013 was passed by Parliament on 27 November 2013. It is the result of a comprehensive review into the Building Act 2004.

A residential property was being auctioned in Auckland. The auction stalled at a price of $2.5 million. The vendors had set a reserve of $2.7 million. The auctioneer halted the auction while he asked the vendors whether they would be prepared to reduce the reserve price. The vendors agreed to reduce the reserve price to $2.6 million.

The Court of Appeal recently had to decide the meaning of a condition in a sale and purchase agreement which made the purchase of a property “subject to and conditional upon … approval of directors”. This is the first time that a “subject to director’s approval” clause has been considered by a New Zealand court.

The Court of Appeal in the case of Westland District Council v TC York and Alpine Glacier Motel Limited, has confirmed that a Council will be liable for any damages suffered by a purchaser as a result...