Study reveals positive impacts of four-day work week
A new study has revealed a four-day work week can improve employee wellbeing, confidence and job satisfaction. Umbrella Wellbeing Principal Psychologist Dr Dougal Sutherland spoke to Corin Dann.
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RNZ News
an hour ago
- RNZ News
Is there any way to make a pre-nup 100 percent certain?
RNZ's money correspondent Susan Edmunds answers your questions. Photo: RNZ Send your questions to I've heard various people and sources say that there is no sure way to protect your assets from a partner after three years as a partner can claim unfairness or something similar. Is this true? Some people say a trust can sometimes be broken and pre-nups sometimes don't hold up. Is there any 100 percent certain way to protect your assets before going into a relationship over three years? Sorry, it's probably true that there's no 100 percent way to protect your assets. People often sign a contracting out agreement if they want their relationship property to be treated differently to the way that the law directs. But you're right that this is open to challenge, particularly if it can be argued that the arrangement is unfair. Bill Atkin, emeritus professor in Victoria University's faculty of law, said this was true of any contract and would depend on the circumstances. "The test for the court to set aside an agreement is where 'giving effect to the agreement would cause serious injustice'. There are other factors taken into account including the desire for certainty. It is not common for a contract to be set aside unless, for example, there has been some improper dealings in getting a party to sign. On the other hand, a contract entered into many years ago may turn out to be unreasonable in the light of what has happened in the meantime. To allow no leeway for setting contracts aside would be unfair." A contract must follow the formalities set out in the Property (Relationships) Act. Atkin said the main one that must be remembered was that both parties must have independent legal advice. "Failure to do this will of course meant that the contract is on the face of it invalid." Nicola Peart, University of Otago law professor, said a contracting out agreement was still a good way of protecting your assets, even if it was not ironclad. "Assuming the agreement was made with full information and independent legal advice, it can still be challenged if it was seriously unjust at the time or has become seriously unjust at a later point in time." And this is me talking - this is probably a good thing, overall. If you're living together as a couple and your circumstances change, it's reasonable that what was fair at the outset might no longer be. It's a good idea to get your own legal advice about your individual circumstances. We are currently settling an estate. The deceased had a credit card to a third-party lender, a Q Card, not a Q MasterCard. I cannot find any mention of estate obligations should the holder die, which I have seen with other credit cards. Does this mean the estate is not obligated to pay the bill? Michelle Pope, a principal trustee at Public Trust said generally, if a credit card account was held only in the name of the person who died, it would become a debt of the estate, to be paid from their assets. "However, if the account was in joint names, the responsibility for the debt usually passes to the surviving account holder. We're assuming the lender has already been contacted and the terms and conditions have been reviewed. If those terms don't specify what happens when someone dies, then the debt would usually be treated as one that needs to be settled." In 2007, I separated from my ex-husband and started a relationship with my new partner. He said to me that he had put his property and business into a trust so no other partners could get any of his property. I was OK with that because I felt going forward he would look after me if I became his wife and the mother of his children. Fast forward to 2016 I received $135,000 from my mum's inheritance and 2018/2019 $130,000 from dad. We had been renovating this beautiful 100-year-old house and property in which we used my inheritance to renovate it. I was happy as this was our family home and it was lovely, until 2020 when he started an affair and we separated. Do you have any suggestions on how I can get my inheritances recognized in our financial settlement case? Peart says there is a pathway ruling on general equitable principles, in particular the "constructive trust", which has been used to compensate former partners who have made substantial contributions to assets held in a trust where the court is satisfied that she had a reasonable expectation that she would share in the value of her contributions and it is reasonable for the trustees to yield an interest. She said, if you were married, section 182 of the Family Proceedings Act could be a way to get a settlement. This covers the court making orders relating to property. But she said the opportunity for a court to intervene in nuptial settlements and do something for a spouse who was not getting anything was not available to people who were de facto. "She may well be able to rely on general equitable principles, in particular the constructive trust, for an order that the trustees of the trust hold a share of the home on trust for her on the basis of contributions made to the property and a reasonable expectation that those contributions would result in some share of the property. "Aside from that, I wonder whether she was advised by whoever was handling her parents' estates about the risks of losing her entitlements if she used it to renovate the family home. In this case, the risk was even greater, because the family home was in trust. "This highlights the risks involved with commingling an inheritance with relationship property . As discussed last week, to be kept separate, an inheritance needs to be held apart from other property. "An inheritance is separate property under the PRA, but once it is intermingled with relationship property or invested in the family home, it becomes relationship property and is subject to the equal sharing regime," Peart said. "Lawyers advising on distribution of estates commonly give advice about that to the beneficiaries of the estate to make sure they realise the risks of not keeping the inheritance separate." Atkin said any property owned by a trust would not be divided under the act. "There are some exceptions, where the trust ownership may be factored in, for example where the trust is a sham or where one of the parties has so much control under the Act that they are treated as having an interest that can be divided. "Also, in some situations there may be compensation where relationship property, such as the home, has been transferred to a trust during the relationship. There are other points here but, in short, the relevant law where there is a trust is complex and not consistent. The Law Commission has accepted that the law needs to be reformed but the government has shown no signs so far of implementing the Law Commission's recommendations. "Now, what about the inheritance? There is no direct way under the Act of recognising the inheritance. Any claim would be against the trust. If the inheritance money had been packaged as a loan to the trust, then the trust would be in debt to the person who lent the money. However, most people in relationships are unlikely to think about doing this. Another possibility is that the heir can make a claim under laws that apply generally, not just to relationships. A genuine possibility is to claim what the law calls a constructive trust in relation to the formal trust. The latter would have to account for the contribution made by way of the inheritance but success here is by no means guaranteed and what the value of a constructive trust would be is subject to all the factors in the case. Legal advice would be needed and one would hope that a satisfactory negotiated settlement can be reached with the trustees. Trouble is that the ex may well be one of the trustees and may play hard to get."
NZ Herald
17 hours ago
- NZ Herald
New World Pt Chevalier to open next to derelict building and abandoned tyre site
Next door is a third of a hectare ex-Magnum Motors corner site, also fronting 8 Parr Rd North but looking in very poor shape. New World Pt Chevalier, Auckland nearing completion. 22 July 2025 New Zealand Herald photograph by Jason Dorday The contrast between the two sites could hardly be greater. How did such a situation arise and what do council and local board people say about it? The state-of-the-art supermarket is aiming to draw tens of thousands of shoppers weekly in the suburb, which currently only has a small Woolworths. The unsightly empty site next door is owned by New Zealand-registered company Hobson One. Its director is Zhengzheng Guo of Remuera. Derelict buildings in front of and around the New World Pt Chevalier which is planned to open in August. Photo / Jason Dorday He has applied for resource consent for apartments to be built in blocks beside the New World. But he is yet to succeed. 'An application was lodged in December 2024 for a three-storey mixed-use building - retail and residential,' a council spokesman said. The application was now on hold, awaiting further information, the spokesman said. Advertising showed he did try to sell the site two years ago, before downscaling plans. In June 2023, he advertised it with Bayleys. 1150-1160 Great North Rd, Pt Chevalier, Auckland, outlined in red. This was in 2023 when Bayleys' agents were marketing the property for sale. Since then, the New World Pt Chevalier has been built on the ex-RSA site next door (above the red line). Photo / Bayleys The big lot was marketed as a development site, with a 177-unit resource consent. Bayleys agents Gerald Rundle and Marty van Barneveld marketed it but were unsuccessful in selling it. Derelict buildings in front of and around the New World Pt Chevalier which is planned to open in August. Photo / Jason Dorday 'The development potential of the site under the zoning has been greatly enhanced by an approved Resource Consent for an eight-level [including basement] development of 177 apartments and three ground-level commercial units over approximately 18,000sq m according to the consented plans,' Bayleys said. Construction progresses at the site of the new New World Pt Chevalier on Great North Rd, Auckland. The store, developed by Foodstuffs North Island and designed by Wingate Architects, is due to open later this year. Photo / Jason Dorday The new supermarket has been set back from the street, with a partly covered walkway now being finished beside the Kumho Tyres building, short-stay parking out the front and a big underground basement for parking. Auckland Council documents describe buildings on the Hobson One site: '1150 and 1158 Great North Rd are occupied by a vehicle workshop, tyre shop and paint and panel beaters. Plans for apartments on Great North Rd beside the new $73 million New World Pt Chevalier. Photo / Auckland Council consent documents 'Built development within these lots comprises two-level industrial style buildings located centrally with a canopy extending over the forecourt in front, a double garage and electrical transformer at the rear of number 1150, and concrete/asphalt driveway and parking areas across the remainder of the land,' the council document says. A larger scheme was once planned. Consent was granted non-notified on February 20, 2023, for an eight-storey apartment block, with basement parking, three commercial units and 177 dwellings, the council noted. Derelict buildings in front of and around the New World Pt Chevalier which is planned to open in August. 22 July 2025 New Zealand Herald photograph by Jason Dorday But the market changed and now only about 50 units are planned. 'Given the changing demands of the market, the applicant wishes to achieve a similar development in terms of land use, albeit on a much smaller scale in terms of the height of the built form, but also notably the depth and volume of earthworks required will be significantly less,' the council document said. Kendyl Smith, chair of the Albert-Eden Local Board, said the site was private property which the council had boarded off. Smith was aware of safety and crime concerns. New World Pt Chevalier, Auckland nearing completion. Photo / Jason Dorday 'The council is actively working to maintain safety in and around this site, which involves working with the property owner to determine the next steps,' Smith said. The board had completed a review of crime prevention through environmental design in the wider area, Smith said. That identified safety-related improvements for Pt Chevalier. New World Pt Chevalier, Auckland nearing completion. Photo / Jason Dorday 'There are also ongoing patrols of the area from the council's community safety wardens, working with NZ Police,' Smith said. 'We're also looking forward to the new modular library, with full library services, joining the town square this October.' The New World opening would provide a welcome addition for locals and for the wider village, Smith said. Kāinga Ora has also developed new social housing in the town centre. This shows work on the block, long since finished. These are the new state homes in Pt Chevalier. Photo / Michael Craig On the corner of Great North Rd and Pt Chevalier Rd, a block of apartments was imported fully built from China. That is for people aged 55-plus moving into or from existing state housing. Kāinga Ora contracted Tawera Group and Teak Construction on this job. They assembled the 61-unit block of single-bedroom new units. Kāinga Ora said the modular homes were all one-bedroom apartments to cater for high demand for those types of places. They are single, factory-built modules. Last year, when New World Pt Chevalier was being built, and the home next door. Photo / Jason Dorday A man in his 90s is yet to find a buyer for his home next to the new supermarket. The Herald reported last year on 12 Parr Rd North. That has been in Albert John Andrews' family for 70 years. Foodstuffs said last year it had been working closely with the family, other neighbours and the community throughout the build process. Anne Gibson has been the Herald's property editor for 25 years, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.
RNZ News
a day ago
- RNZ News
What's going on with Rocket Lab shares?
Photo: RNZ/ Nate McKinnon Rocket Lab may be recording multi-million-dollar losses, but its share price keeps on going up. Shares in the New Zealand-founded space company have risen more than 800 percent in the past year, to just under US$50 each. In August last year, they were changing hands for less than US$5. In its 2024 financial year, the company recorded a loss of US$33 million to US$35m, from record annual revenue of US$436.2m. Greg Smith, head of retail at Devon Funds, said investors were looking past the lack of profitability, and there was a lot of momentum priced in to its shares. "But the company has been delivering. It is gaining huge credibility through deals with national space agencies and spending here has been ramping up. There's been the recent partnership agreed with the European Space Agency to launch satellites for constellation navigation before December. "And there has been a string of successful launches. A rocket is being produced every 15 days, and [it has] successfully launched its 66th, 67th and 68th Electron rockets." He said the company's upcoming, bigger Neutron medium-lift rocket was another driver of growth. If it was successful, it could unlock US$5.6 billion in National Security Space Launch contracts. "The company isn't profitable yet, so we can't really look at earnings multiples. Even to sales it is looking high at up to 10 times, but if it keeps delivering we might yet see more momentum." Gretjan Verdickt, a lecturer of finance at the University of Auckland, said a significant portion of Rocket Lab's current valuation was based on the promise of a future that was "both exciting and challenging to value". "How much will the space economy truly be worth in 10 or 20 years? How many applications will it lead to? It's difficult for anyone to grapple with. Because of that uncertainty, optimistic investors are willing to pay a very high price today for the potential of a massive payoff down the road. They see a leader in a burgeoning industry and don't want to miss out. "This part of the valuation is precarious. A narrative of explosive growth and future dominance sustains it. If that optimism fades, even slightly, you could see a significant drop. That said, for anyone who got in early, a drop would still leave them with an amazing return." He said the "hype-driven" component of the share price made it fragile. "If you think about it from a behavioural finance point of view, there is a lot of 'fear of missing out' going on too. If you missed the boat at 100 percent, 200 percent... and you jump in late, the prices - because you are willing to buy - the stock price increases more. This leads to a momentum effect." He said the other aspect of the share price was the company's cash flow. "There is a real, tangible business generating real cash flows behind the stock price. "Rocket Lab has already realised tremendous growth. Their revenue has increased significantly over the past few years, and they have a backlog of over $1 billion in signed contracts, providing a clear line of sight into future earnings. "They have two core pillars of growth. First, their proven Electron rocket is a workhorse for the small satellite market. Second, and more importantly for the future, is their upcoming Neutron rocket, which is designed to compete with larger players like SpaceX for much bigger, more lucrative contracts. "Additionally, they're not just a launch company. Their Space Systems division - which builds satellite components and platforms - is their biggest revenue driver. They are strategically building an end-to-end space company, and their pending acquisition of the company Mynaric is another step in that direction." When it came to whether the 800 percent increase was sustainable, the level of share price was probably not, he said. "Unless the company's growth potential is even better than what people are currently thinking. However, the underlying business growth is there. There is a very real and rapidly growing company here. The ultimate test will be whether its fundamental performance can grow fast enough to justify the market's sky-high expectations. That said, if the balloon pops, it can go real fast, real quick."
