Land in NZ - some questions
 

We are in the very early stages of a decision to emmigrate and are trying to piece together a few key facts about possible destinations, of which NZ is one.

We'd be looking for a ranch style property with good acreage (500+) and would probably go the Investor route but need some information to help establish whether NZ is for us. I'd be very grateful if anyone could help out with answers to the following questions.

1 - We've had problems with rights of way over our land in the UK and this is one of the reasons we're thinking of moving as it's pretty impossible to own large amounts of land without public access. Is their a similar network of rights of way in NZ such as footpaths, bridleways and byeways?

2 - Planning law in the UK is notoriously tight and I wondered what it was like in NZ? Is it possible to buy land with a small house and rebuild something much larger?

3 - If I said we were interested in land with a mixture of fields, woodland and hills maybe with water too, which areas should we start looking at first?

4 - Would we be permitted to employ people on the land if we arrived on the Investor visa?

Thanks :)

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

I have no expertise whatsoever in this area but one possible big hurdle will be the Maori who own a lot of land in NZ and may not allow such large areas to be taken over. However, that does depend on where you would be looking to build. Just bear in mind a lot of land is sacred and taniwhas (friendly monsters - I am serious) inhabit a lot of places. But if 500 acres are for sale in the first place, you'd think it is legitimately for sale and you could do what you want.

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

just a quick selection

http://www.bayleys.co.nz/search/prop...o2.x=9&go2.y=9



relocating houses is a fairly straight forward practice here, but red tape as usual, although councils can walk you through it all.

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

Sorry Farmer Palmer, but there are rights of way here in NZ as well.

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

There is a lot to all of it over here as well.
As for building your own house or relocating...

Be careful to check out if there are any covenants on the land - such as no dogs/cats or no relocated houses or a million other things. If you did find some land you liked it would be in your interests to find out all this first as they arent felxible ( IOE)

Planning is time consuming and there are mounds of paperwork. We recently relocated a house to our land for my parents - and the ease/difficulty depends a lot on the amount of land you have and it would seem the council who are dealing with it - I found our council very helpful.. Also whether its a second dwelling or going to be the primary one. You will need either resource consent ( long and hard and V expensive) or building consent - still long and quite hard but less expensive. Also the regulations will be different for different areas so I can only tell you about where I live. You'll to think about getting electricity to the land or from the original house, water supply and sewage - septic tank etc and there are very strict rules on which ones you can put in in certain areas.

There is no right to roam in NZ but there are lots of things to know about rights of way, and queens chains and stuff!!

We own ( whats for us!) quite a lot of land, it is pretty much like you describe, mature trees, paddocks, waterfalls etc - it is gorgeous.
I'm not sure about the investors visa - but if you are going to work it you may find you need to be GST registered - all sorts of minefields here!

I could go on for ever! so if you need any info pm me and I'll see if I know the answer!

:)

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

1. No network of pathways (unfortunately :o ).
Example: People who want to cross land to hunt in 'the bush', have to seek the owners permission.
And there aren't hoards of hikers demanding rights like the UK. There aren't hoards of people full stop!

2. Building restrictions are very much easier. Generally, if you own land you will be given permission by the local council to build a house or upgrade an existing one. Exceptions are rare.

3.Land like this exists in all parts of NZ.

4. There are no restrictions to employing people...if you can find someone willing to work for you ;) (tight labour market).

Quite a few British farmers/land owners have moved to NZ because of the stigma and difficulty attached to farming in the UK, and for the non interference by bureaucrats in NZ (think EU regulations!).

It's very much easier here to do most things, and plenty of farms and land for sale:

http://www.wrightsonrealestate.co.nz/


Kip

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

I believe there are still some area's where you are limited to being a citizen before you can buy land so you'd have to check that out.

Alot of land has convenant's attached to it stating what you can and can't build and you will need either a resource consent or building consent.

Different council's have different 'rules' contained within District Council Plan's which you'd need to look at, as well as their future one to see what the Environmental Council has already agreed to go into place, this will also show you the different 'zones' the land has and will have in the future, i.e. rural, future urban, residental, industrial, etc. Once you know where you are looking at moving to have a look at the Council website for more info and they usually have good instructions for how you'd go about applying for a resource consent.

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

Kip has answered your questions pretty well.

Keep in mind that 500 acres is a very small farm by NZ standards, you probably need to be looking at 500Ha at least for an economic unit. Depends on whether you are buying it for lifestyle or business. For a sheep or beef farm you might employ 0-1 workers for a decent sized farm - it is a very different scene from the UK.

Price of land is at an all time high, driven mainly by global demand for dairy products and meat. I can put you in touch with a very good farm real estate agent if you are looking at the southern part of NZ.

There are also Overseas Investment rules relating to land (over 5 Ha), but I think if you are becoming resident (>183 days per year in the country) you will be OK.

http://www.oio.linz.govt.nz/


Good luck with your research. post or pm me if you have any other queries.

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

Farm land is generally pretty free of covenants, and most farms probably already have 2-3 residential buildings on them already (so those sites can be used almost as of right). Its normally not too difficult to get permission for a new building platform site, except where it might form part of a AONB.

Here is an example of an amazing property currently for sale, where the term "iconic" really does apply. Bit rich for me, but I can dream...
http://www.realestate.co.nz/451290

http://stanfield.co.nz/bushey_park.php

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

Great answers here folks. It's late here right now. Will study and digest tomorrow :)

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

[
EH up farmer Giles I hope you won't bring your shotgun to dish out punishment to any commoners who dare to tresspass on a public right of way. I doth my cap to you sir.

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

Now then, now then. You cannot trespass on a public right of way. Our problem is trespassers not on a right of way.

Please use a capital S in Sir when addressing me in future :D

Re: Land in NZ - some questions
 

judging by their nickname Sir Magnum may be packing larger diameter projectiles than you average shotgun.............go ahead punk, make his day!!!! :D