Caveat notices
A notice that a caveat has been lodged against your title will read:
Caveat Notice Pursuant to Section 139 of the Land Transfer Act
TAKE NOTICE that a Caveat has been lodged with Land Information New Zealand by [name of the person who lodged the caveat] forbidding the registration of any Memorandum of Transfer or other instrument affecting the land contained in Record of Title [title number].
A caveat is a document that can be entered against the title for a property. A caveat is usually lodged at Toitū Te Whenua to protect an unregistered interest in the property.
The caveat notice will show who lodged the caveat but not why. If you are unsure why a caveat has been entered against the title for your property, you can order a copy of the caveat from Toitū Te Whenua (or your solicitor will do this for you).
See Search for and order a land record to order a copy of the caveat (the type of record to order is an “Instrument”)..
Common scenarios that may cause a person to lodge a caveat against your property are:
- You have guaranteed a loan to someone else. You may have agreed with the lender that the lender could caveat your title.
- You have agreed to sell your property. The buyer may caveat your title.
Provided the legal requirements to enter a caveat are met, Toitū Te Whenua will enter a caveat against the affected title. Toitū Te Whenua is not required to verify whether the person who lodged the caveat is entitled to the interest that they claim to have.
In all cases, if you are unsure why your property has been caveated, or you wish to remove the caveat you should seek legal advice.
You may also refer to the Caveats and Other Stops on Registration Guideline 2018 – LINZG20773
Notices advising of a Notice of Claim
A notice advising that a notice of claim has been lodged against your title will read:
Notice of Claim of Interest under the Property (Relationships) Act 1976
TAKE NOTICE that a notice of claim has been lodged with Land Information New Zealand by [name of the person that lodged the notice of claim] forbidding the registration of any Memorandum of Transfer or other instrument affecting the land contained in Record of Title [title number].
A notice of claim is a document that can be lodged against a title under the Property (Relationships) Act 1976.
A notice of claim is lodged under s 42 of the Property (Relationships) Act 1976. The person who lodges the notice of claim (the claimant) does so because they believe they have an interest in the property by virtue of their relationship with the legal or beneficial owner of the property.
The notice from Toitū Te Whenua will show who lodged the notice of claim but not why. If you are unsure why a notice of claim has been entered against the title for your property, you can order a copy of the notice of claim from Toitū Te Whenua (or your solicitor will do this for you). See “Order a copy of a land record ” to order a copy of the notice of claim (the type of record to order is “Instrument” or “Document”).
Provided the legal requirements to enter a notice of claim are met, Toitū Te Whenua will enter a notice of claim against the affected title. Toitū Te Whenua is not required to verify whether the person who lodged the notice of claim is entitled to the interest that they claim to have.
In all cases, if you are unsure why your property has been made subject to a notice of claim, or you wish to remove the notice of claim you should seek your own legal advice.
You may also refer to the Caveats and Other Stops on Registration Guideline 2018 – LINZG20773
Notices that a Caveat or Notice of Claim will lapse
If you have lodged a Caveat or a Notice of Claim you may receive a notice that the Caveat or Notice of Claim will lapse.
These notices will say:
Land Transfer Act 2017 – Section 143: Notice of Lapse of Caveat/Notice of Claim
TAKE NOTICE that application has been made by [name of person] to lapse the Caveat/Notice of Claim lodged by you
These notices are issued when somebody has applied to Toitū Te Whenua to lapse your Caveat or Notice of Claim. In order to prevent removal of your Caveat/Notice of Claim, you must obtain, and lodge with Toitū Te Whenua, an order of the Court. This must be done before the end of the prescribed lapsing period specified in the notice. Toitū Te Whenua cannot give assistance in this process and you should seek your own legal advice.
You may also refer to the Caveats and Other Stops on Registration Guideline 2018 – LINZG20773
Adjoining owner notices
You may receive an adjoining owner notice under s 202(1)(b) Land Transfer Act 2017.
The notice will be headed “Land Transfer Act 2017 – Section 202(1)(b): Notice to Adjoining Owner or Occupier”
The notice will begin with:
This notice is to advise you that land adjoining your property is being re-surveyed and to give you the opportunity to confirm that there is no encroachment on your land. You may do so by inspecting either the Cadastral Survey Dataset or the boundary marks on the land. A copy of the Cadastral Survey Dataset is attached for your information”
These notices are issued by Toitū Te Whenua when a landowner surveys their property that is "limited as to parcels"
A title that is “limited as to parcels” is a result of an historical legal requirement. At the time that the first title was issued for that land, a guaranteed title could not be issued. This is because either the survey information was insufficient or there could have been someone else in adverse possession of part of the title.
In order to “uplift limitations” and obtain a guaranteed title (for which the boundaries are certain and known), a full survey is required.
There is a risk that when undertaking the full survey, the boundaries identified by the surveyor could be disputed (at law) by an adjoining owner or occupier.
When Toitū Te Whenua receives a full survey of a title that is limited as to parcels and is asked to remove the limitations from that title, Toitū Te Whenua will give notice of the survey to all adjoining owners and occupiers (unless they have already consented to the survey).
The notices contain some information about the steps that you can take. However if you do not understand the notice or what you should do, you should seek your own legal advice.