Land Info Memo

[macassar]

Hi all, can someone explain what Land information memorandum is and how to obtain one for a property.
Dumb Question? Apologies

macassar

[muppet]

Hi Macassar

Welcome to the forum.

No question will be regarded as a silly question. There will always be someone to offer an answer.

LIM's are available from the local council of the area you are wishing to buy a property in. It will detail all the information that the council has on the house you are doing due diligence on.

Costs will range from about $175 to about $250.

Hope this helps. Someone else may be able to give you more detailed information.

Regards

[donna]

Hi Macassar

Additionally some councils will charge a higher fee for a 24hour service.

You need to review the property when you get the LIM and ensure that it matches what the council thinks it looks like. In many cases work is done that isn't permitted.

In these instances you may want to make a condition of sale that all work on the house is permitted and that the current owners have to get a "Safe and Sanitary" certificate for anything that doesn't match the LIM.

Sarah

[macassar]

Thanks muppet and sarah, great tip too sarah.
Will be over in feb, to do the deed and hopefully find a good IP.
Cheers

[Marc]

Hello!

Also have a read of this article which is on our web site

http://www.propertytalk.co.nz/module...howpage&pid=26

Best regards

Marc

[Glenn]

In my opinion LIM's are a waste of time when you are buying a property but then everyone does it so it must be right ?? Hello ??
What is a far better system is to go into your local council and pay your $12 or what ever they charge and look at the plans for the house. Most councils will run through their computer for you to easily check if code compliances have been all issued for all building consents.
Also when looking at the plans at the council check that all building alterations like log fires and closed in decks and garages have had a building consent. Also it does not hurt to make sure the plans match with what has been built.
whilst you are there it will only take a few more minutes and costs nothing to check the district scheme for the property you are interested in. None of these nasty things come up in a LIM but then your lawyer is not a building expert he is a legal expert and a LIM is a legal document. So your lawyer will normally say get one.
what does everyone else do ??
Glenn

[Marc]

Hello,

For our last IP we went to the council and checked the file for the property. It was a good idea because we found out that the fire burner in the living room was installed without council approval 5 years ago. This would mean that if the house burnt down due to the fire burner then the insurance could be void.

We use also get a LIM report since a couple of hundred spent is not that much when you look at the price of the property.

Best Regards

Marc

[Marcus]

I agree with the things Glenn suggested, and have in fact never paid for a LIM report.

Just to add to Glenns points, when in at council you can check where services run (handy to know if you have plans to subdivide) on council plans and if there may be any changes to infrastructure planned for the future.

A local group here in Tauranga used to do what they called a LIS report where by they would do all the things Glenn has listed (including making a trip to the property to compare plans to property)for around $240.00. They were kind enough to point out all the reasons why their system was superior to a LIM. Unfortunately for the group concerned, I think most people realised they could do all these checks for themselves.

I guess this could be a good option for those living overseas.

Happy investing for 2004.

Kind regards,
Marcus.

[wada]

Hello Macassar,

Like Marcus we have yet to get a LIM. We get a thorough building and electrical report from our trusted team of contractors. They have contacts, ways and means that anything in a LIM is already known by them.

However, if you want to get more involved then go to local council and get the LIM, property file and District plans for the area you are buying in.

There's some excellent advice in this post. Like every other investor you have to chose a system that works for you.

Wada

[macassar]

Thanks guys/gals, very interesting points of view. Glenn seems satisfied with his due diligence without a LIM(Lawyers In Money? - MINE!!!!)
Save a dollar and still be satisfied? Why not

[RentMaster]

Personally I always get a LIM. Unless you know what you are looking at, it would be quite easy to miss something.

As Marc says, the LIM only costs a few hundred, but considering the cost of the property, a few hundred is next to nothing. One day it could save you thousands. It is a bit like insurance. Does anyone go without insurance because they can save a few bucks?

If you watch Fair Go on TV, there have been a number of stories about people who have purchased without a LIM, only to find out later about a major problem, which the council records could have told them before they purchased.

If you can look at the council records and be sure you know what you are looking at and looking for, then that is an alternative.

[Marcus]

Hi Andrew,

getting a LIM is all fine and well but there are holes in the system.

Like Glenn points out, you are able to check that all things in the building file have been inspected and passed.

The file will show the basic building plan, additions and alterations applied for, the plans associated with carrying out the task/s, and most importantly, the signing off of the work.

A possible failure with a LIM is that work is often carried out on properties that has not been applied for or signed off.

For example council may have on file a 3xbrm 2xbthrm 2xgge house that has a building plan showing all these things applied for and signed off.
Great!
However, this house may have changed hands 3 or 4 times over a 10yr period with LIMS being applied for and coming up clear time after time. However, the council may be unaware of the deck, unfenced swimming pool, un-permitted chip heater and additional self-contained sleep-out that have never been applied for or permitted.
Who is to say when they were put there or whether or to what standard they were made?

Should there be work done that has been carried like this, the value and resale can be impacted.

If you have bought thinking everything associated with the property was fine, you may be disappointed when the others that have checked files inform you of the differences. i.e. you may pay an inflated price when you buy and get allot less when it comes time to sell.

Regards,
Marcus.

[RentMaster]

Maybe it depends on which council you get your LIM from.

The last LIM report I got (Waitakere City Council) showed all the permits which had been applied for and which ones had been approved. As a result of looking at that LIM, it became evident to me that the work they had done under the house had not been permitted. I got the previous owner to get a 'Safe and Sanitory' report on that work before I purchased it. That report is now stored with the council for any future purchaser to look at.

In other words, it was the LIM report which highlighted the fact that there was unpermitted work which had been done.

The LIM report also tells you a lot about the surrounding area not just the house. Such as if the council intends to put a motorway through, or if the area is know to flood regularly, zoning restrictions etc.

If I had gone to the council, I probably could have sifted through and got the same information. I have done this once. But you need to know where to look and to determine what is important information and what is not. But I suppose once you had seen a few of them, you should be able to find what you want quick enough.

[Marcus]

(I can't speak for other areas but...) The staff employed in council here are there to help you with researching properties and from what you have mentioned Andrew, it sounds like it's all much the same information.

Our local council has on computer details like, contours of land (risks for flooding), location of services run for the property, and general boundary layout for all district properties. The personnel there are more than happy to help and answer questions re. future developments. This part is free!
There is a $5.00 charge however for viewing the property file (Once you show your face enough times they tend to look after you a bit, especially if you are looking at multiple files).

For those about to try personally researching these things for a first time, I would suggest you ask loads of questions and let them know that you are a "first timer". My first time I had a council person walk me through the file and point out the things to watch out for. They do this stuff day in day out and have nothing to gain or lose by your purchase or not (as opposed to an agent). So don't rely on an agent to try and show you the ropes. (Yes I do know there could possibly be some honest RE agents out there......... BAH! Who am I trying to kid!?)

I have viewed allot of files which would have cost me a small fortune in LIM's, and have only purchased a fraction of these.

I got the previous owner to get a 'Safe and Sanitory' report on that work before I purchased it.

These are quite common here due to a fire in council a while back that destroyed and damaged allot of files. So Safe/Sanitary reports are the next best option.

Regards

[macassar]

Nice little thread we have going here, thanks to you all and i will be taking a print out with me when we cross the pond. Information is a great tool!
Cheers
Macassar