The Māori Land Court bench have released a practice note for lending money on whenua Māori. Unlocking finance is an important part of facilitating the occupation, development, and utilisation of whenua Māori for the benefit of owners, their whānau, and their hapū and this practice note is another step on the road to realising this vision.
This practice note has been issued as a guide to assist landowners, lawyers and the banking sector with lending and borrowing against Māori freehold land. The practice note addresses important questions that whānau and professionals working in the sector are grappling with including:
- How do owners of whenua Māori approve a mortgage?
- How is a mortgage registered against whenua Māori?
- Can a mortgage be registered against the leasehold estate of whenua Māori?
- How does a mortgagee exercise power of mortgagee sale in relation to whenua Māori?
The practice note demystifies what can appear a complex subject, and support both whānau and lenders to improve access to finance for development activity on whenua Māori.
You can easily access the practice note for lending on whenua Māori here.