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Duke & Cooke Property News |
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Published on: 22nd February 2010 LOW SALES FAIL TO DENT OPTIMISM LOW SALES FAIL TO DENT OPTIMISMHouse sales in Nelson and Marlborough plummeted to new lows last month but Real Estate Institute branch president Vaughan Borcovsky says more salespeople are joining the industry. January was always a quiet month, and the region’s median sale price had increased 11 per cent, from $306,000 to $341,250, compared with last year, he said. ‘‘That’s more indication of the middle to upper market moving again.’’ (The Nelson Mail, Monday 15 February 2010) COMPANY FACES LIQUIDATIONMonaco Village Ltd looks set to be liquidated following a successful application in the High Court at Christchurch yesterday. The company that developed the Grand Mercure Nelson Monaco, one of Nelson’s largest hotels, has been the subject of complaints by investors claiming that they have not been paid the 8 per cent return they were promised. The company is also reported to have outstanding debts with local businesses. (The Nelson Mail, Tuesday 16 February 2010) RESIDENTS TOLD DAM RISK SLIGHTResidents should not be worried about ‘‘living in the shadow’’ of the proposed Lee Valley dam because it is highly unlikely that it will ever fail, the public were told last night. The proposed dam would store up to 13.4 million cubic metres of water to flow into the Waimea River for supply to the Waimea Basin for irrigation, urban and industrial use. (The Nelson Mail, Tuesday 16 February 2010) TDC LEFT RED-FACED OVER BAY BLUNDERSLegal failings insignificant, says Wylie Alice Cowdrey and Hayley Gale THE Tasman District facing a double-whammy of embarrassments over failings in its handling of two big controversies in Golden Bay. In one of the cases, the council is being forced to turn to Parliament to sort out a blunder which saw it impose a stormwater rate on the Tata Beach community without following the legal process. In the other, Golden Bay environmentalists are protesting that the TDC has reneged on what was supposed to be a legally binding agreement to protect the district’s outstanding landscapes. The environmental groups say they abandoned a court appeal in return for promises that the protections would be put in place, but the agreed deadline has been missed. The council is hoping to ride out both controversies and does not accept the legal failings in either case are significant. Chief executive Paul Wylie described the Tata Beach situation as a ‘‘technical flaw’’. Tata Beach stormwater rate The Ombudsman has ruled the TDC imposed the rate without following proper procedure and $25,813 from 152 ratepayers is at stake this year. The council is to ask Parliament to pass legislation to give the rate backdated ratification, to avoid having to repay the money or fight a legal battle through the courts. Golden Bay's outstanding landscapes TDC has failed to meet a 2008 agreement to give legal protection to Golden Bay's most precious landscapes, including the North-West Coast, the coastline from Puponga to Rangihaeata, and the Tarakohe limestone cliffs. It hopes to appoint a new planner and give top priority to getting those controls in place by the end of the year - a year later than agreed. (The Nelson Mail, Thursday 18 February 2010) HOLIDAY HOMES TARGETEDTasman rates are predicted to creep up by at least 4 per cent this year, and holiday home owners in the district may be hit with a tourism tax. These rates, plus a $20 increase in the uniform annual general charge, will be included in the council’s draft annual plan, due to be adopted next month. The general rate increase set out in the council’s long-term plan this year was just over 5 per cent, but the council has been ‘‘massaging’’ the amount down, says Tasman Mayor Richard Kempthorne. TDC proposed changes - 4% rate rise - $20 rise in uniform annual general change - 4000 more to pay tourism rate (The Nelson Mail, Friday 19 February 2010) DEVELOPER OWES $4.6MThe company that developed the Grand Mercure Nelson Monaco owes Lombard Finance $4.6 million, receiver John Fisk says. Lombard Finance appointed Mr Fisk of Pricewaterhouse Coopers to act as the receiver for Monaco Village Ltd, after the High Court at Christchurch this week accepted an application to liquidate the company. A liquidator has also now been appointed. Mr Fisk said Monaco Village Ltd’s main assets were 13 unsold units in the resort. ‘‘Our primary focus now will be to establish the best way to market the units and get them sold and recover as much debt as we can.’’ Monaco Village Ltd developed the $60 million resort and is directed by Scott Sanders. He has previously said his company was unable to pay the guaranteed returns promised to investors when his financer, Lombard Finance, went into receivership. Mr Sanders is also a director of Monaco Management Ltd, which runs the resort. Mr Sanders and Monaco Management managing director Clare Davies insist that the resort is performing well and is unaffected by Monaco Village Ltd’s financial problems. (The Nelson Mail, Saturday 20 February 2010) BUYERS SOUGHT FOR PLAYHOUSEPolice are no longer investigating the loss of $10,000 worth of food from the defunct Playhouse Cafe, which a Nelson finance company has taken control of. Fico Finance executive director Scott Dodd said his company had taken over the bank interest in the business and was marketing it for sale. (The Nelson Mail, Saturday 20 February 2010) PROPERTY WATCH'Stunning' motor lodge planned A ‘‘visually stunning’’ upmarket motor lodge called the Sails is planned for three sites currently occupied by homes in Motueka’s main street. Coffey’s agent Anne Marshall said the properties, opposite McDonald’s in High St, had been rented out since the owners agreed to sell last year to Christchurch-based developer Brent Ennor. ‘‘The developer feels there’s a space there for an upmarket hotel, and this one is definitely going to be top of the range.’’ She said work on the 17-unit motel would not proceed until a lessee had been signed up, but it was intended to be open in time for next year’s Rugby World Cup. ‘‘I’ve got two people looking seriously at it.’’ The lease has been advertised for $950,000 plus GST. Good prices for properties The former home of prominent Nelsonian Austen Ward was one of three places sold through Haven Realty for more than $700,000 within a week, agent Barry Gill says. The property at 8 Leach Place, off Austen Ward Heights in Stoke, is where Mr Ward used to display a cross every Easter. Mr Gill and wife Christine originally tendered the 1960s home on a section of more than 2000 square metres last December, then marketed it, asking offers over $730,000. It attracted five offers – three from locals and two from newcomers to Nelson, Mr Gill said. The property has a rateable value of $660,000 and sold for ‘‘close to’’ the asking price. Meanwhile, a 60-year-old home on 2210sq m section at 17 Stansell Ave on the Tahunanui Hills went for $722,000, and a four-bedroom, two-bathroom house at 10 The Cliffs fetched $730,000, both at auction. Their RVs are $670,000 and $620,000 respectively. New home for dance, film studio Dance Nelson and Hawke Films has shifted to new premises above Bowater Hyundai at 45 Hardy St, Nelson. Keith and Louise Hawke have run the dance school and film business from the Italian Club in Trafalgar St since about 2001. Mr Hawke said the club intended to make more use of its facilities during the 2011 Rugby World Cup, prompting the need to move. The new premises, leased through Summit commercial agent Bevan Dixon, had undergone a transformation to become a ballet and film studio, he said. Nelson home tops price table A four-bedroom home at 56 Brougham St, Nelson fetched the highest price of any residential property sold in the region by real estate agents last month. The property, with an RV of $900,000, was listed for $1.3 million last October and sold for that price on January 14. Another four-bedroom home at 561 Rocks Rd, Tahunanui was listed for $925,000 in November and went for $910,000 last month. Its RV was $825,000. Some other successful sales included a three-bedroom home on a 1335sq m property at 3 Winns Lane, Tahunanui, which was listed for $450,000 and sold for $510,000; a three-bedroom place at 16 Baldwin Rd, listed for $275,000 and sold for $342,000; and a three-bedroom home at 15 Cambria St in the Wood, which was listed on January 11 for $399,950 and signed up the next day for $419,000. Buyers take swift action Ray White Stoke received offers on a two-bedroom unit in Tahunanui and a three-bedroom home in Abraham Heights, Nelson within days of putting them to the market. Principal Christine Cook said the Abraham Heights home, which was in need of some work, attracted a conditional offer 48 hours after it was advertised at offers over $195,000, and fetched in excess of $200,000. The RV was $225,000. The Tahunanui unit at 1/7 Rawhiti St went on the market for offers over $225,000 and had four offers presented four days later, she said. ‘‘It was a fantastic result. The vendors were thrilled.’’ Its RV is $205,000. (The Nelson Mail, Saturday 20 February 2010) THOUGHT FOR THE WEEKDoesn't expecting the unexpected make the unexpected become the expected? |
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