Anyone keeping up with the debate on the housing sector will be aware that the tax system remains one of the tools being used to influence property market behaviour. The bright-line test, which taxes profits made on residential land acquired and disposed of within the applicable bright-line period, subject to some exceptions, continues to be a key compliance focus for Inland Revenue—even after recent legislative changes.

When people decide to go into business together, the focus is usually on customers, premises, staff and funding. The ownership and control arrangements are often left to last or stitched together from a generic template. That can be a costly mistake.

A growing chorus of commentators has questioned whether residential property investment in New Zealand still makes sense. As financial adviser Katie Wesney observed in a recent opinion piece for Stuff, "over the past year, a growing number of commentators have questioned whether property investment in New Zealand still works" [1].