Foreign buyers spend $732m

By ANNE GIBSON

Foreigners were given approval to buy $732 million worth of New Zealand property and businesses in October, the latest Overseas Investment Commission figures show.

The $456 million insurance deal granting the Insurance Australia Group permission to buy Britain's Commercial Union International Holdings was the single largest deal declared in October.

Under the deal IAG bought NZI's insurance operations in New Zealand.

Macquarie Goodman Funds Management's $51.6 million deal to buy Central Park at 666 Great South Rd in Auckland was the second largest deal approved.

The Australian property investor is buying the property from Hong Kong's Jhunjhnuwala family and wants to expand and improve the Penrose/Greenlane office park.

Australia's Beston Delegat's Wine Trust was cleared to buy New Zealand's Delegat's Wine Estate for $9.8 million. The deal involves buying 200ha of freehold land at Seddon in Marlborough from the Delegats, who will sell their Dashwood Vineyard and then lease it back.

The commission said the applicant was a specialist funding vehicle established to capitalise on the growth in the viticultural industry by providing funding for the infrastructure requirement.

"It has an established portfolio in Australia and New Zealand and acquires vineyards and associated infrastructure from certain wineries and vineyard operators and leases them back for fixed terms."

Waitakere Properties will sell 2ha of land on the Te Atatu Peninsula in Auckland to the Asian-controlled home builder, Universal Homes, for $3.8 million. Singaporean and Chinese investors own Universal, which is developing a large subdivision on the land at Vinograd Drive where it will build 46 townhouses.

A Japanese business writer and lecturer, Nobuyoshi Seki, was refused permission to buy a Castor Bay property at 51 Beach Rd for $3 million. He owns a publishing company in Japan and wanted a place here to use as a guest/boarding house for Japanese business people, the commission said. None has been available, although he bought two houses at Torbay and Milford in February, but they are too small to be guest/boarding houses.

Britain's Montana Group was cleared to buy 70ha of Marlborough land from Rayonier New Zealand, owned by United States interests. It will pay $2.6 million.

"The proposed purchase will provide the applicant with an increased grape supply which will enable it to continue to develop its export wine markets and enhance the reputation of New Zealand wine overseas," the commission said.

A $2.4 million deal for Australia's Samuel Smith & Son to buy 14.9ha of vineyard land near Blenheim from New Zealand interests was approved. The Australians operate under the Yalumba label and have Australia's oldest family-owned winery based in the Barossa Valley region, according to their application.

Dale and Rhonda Ellis of the United States were cleared to buy 22ha of Marlborough land from the McCallum family for $1.9 million. The land is used for cropping and pastoral purposes, but the Ellises want to turn it into a vineyard.

American Calvin Erdman got permission to buy an interest in 2687ha of land on the Main West Coast Rd at Springfield in Canterbury for $1.9 million.

Erdman is already the principal shareholder in a large sheep farm at Coleridge Downs in the same region but now wants to buy a half share in the company that owns Annavale farm, which runs Corriedale ewes producing prime and store lands, the commission said.

Bell Investment Trust is the vendor.

Lee Guertler and Della Lin of the US received approval to buy 479ha of land in Masterton for $1.1 million. They want to convert the sheep and cattle farm into a hunting business, establishing a lodge there and joining another operator who runs a fur processing and retailing business.

US investors were cleared to buy 30ha of land on Bendigo Station near Cromwell in Central Otago for $731,000. They want to convert the holding into a vineyard, growing pinot noir grapes there.

Michael and Claire Yeoman of Britain got permission to buy 5ha of Drury land near Auckland for $773,000. The property will be their home.

In a $702,000 deal, Kenneth Vidar and Michael Libster of the US were cleared to buy 32ha of land near Tarras in Central Otago for viticulture development.

Canada's Forest Creek Station was cleared to pay New Zealand's Harpenden Holdings $720,000 for land at the Rangitata Gorge in South Canterbury. The Canadians already own the 2228ha Forest Creek Station, a forestry and agriculture operation.