New Zealand Historic Places Trust Pouhere Taonga
 

Heritage Covenants

Heritage covenants attach to a land title and place conditions or restrictions on its use. They are therefore a very important mechanism for long term heritage protection. A covenant involves an agreement between the Trust and a property owner and once signed is permanently attached to a property’s title. It therefore binds all subsequent owners and any breach of this covenant is an offence under the Historic Places Act.

To date the Trust has entered into over 80 heritage covenants with property owners. About a third apply to residential properties, where the owners have worked to restore their historic homes and want their work to be protected if they later decide to sell the property.

Seven covenants apply to former post offices (in Auckland, Ponsonby, Tauranga, Havelock, Oamaru, Lawrence, Port Chalmers), due to the policy of the government in covenanting some historic properties before they disposed of them.

Other covenants cover such things as stables, farm stations, rock art sites, and archaeological sites.

There are five Maori pa sites protected by covenants, either at the request of the property owners or as a condition of resource consents imposed by local authorities under the Resource Management Act.

 
 

Paper trail

A heritage covenant can be employed by property owners wanting to protect their historic place or area, as Major John Moore found out when he sought to place an Historic Places Trust heritage covenant over his home several years ago.

Major Moore wanted to preserve the integrity and history of his Christchurch home for
several generations, and was able to do so by negotiating a heritage
covenant through the Trust.

The term “heritage covenant” can strike dread into the heart of
a developer as much as it gives peace of mind to property owners
wishing to protect their historic patches. Covenants are registered on the title of a property and exist in perpetuity. Therefore, they are still binding once a property changes hands.

However, new owners of covenanted properties can approach the NZHPT to discuss the future of the property in light of the terms of the covenant.
>> Read more

 


 

Contact Us | Helpful Tips

© New Zealand Historic Places Trust Pouhere Taonga
Support the Trust by calling
+64 4 472-4341