If changes have been made to your property that are not shown on the original Flats Plan, your title may be considered defective. This can create legal and financial complications—especially when selling, as it may prevent buyers from securing finance.
To avoid delays or lost sale opportunities, it’s important to address this early. At Surani Associates, we manage the full conversion process—from the initial review through to issuing new titles—helping ensure a smooth and compliant outcome.
Process
Cross lease conversions generally follow these key stages:
1. Neighbour Agreement
All cross-lease property owners must be consulted. Written approval from your neighbours is recommended, along with an agreement on how costs will be shared.
2. Initial Investigations
The surveyor carries out site investigations (including topographical survey and utility tracing) to understand the current state of the property. This enables the Surveyor to prepare a Resource Consent application for Auckland Council.
3. Resource Consent
A Resource Consent is required to convert cross-lease titles in Auckland. The application is assessed under the Resource Management Act, the Auckland Unitary Plan, and other relevant planning rules.
4. Cadastral Survey
Once consent is granted, The Surveyor prepare the necessary legal survey plans and documents and submit with Auckland Council to obtain s223 approval, and s224c certification may also be required. Final survey plans are submitted to Land Information New Zealand, who process this information and approve the plans.
5. New Titles
After all approvals are obtained, we lodge an application with LINZ for the issue of new freehold titles, completing the conversion process.