The new owners sought a trespass order on May 22 to remove O’Connell and her supporters, and when that didn’t work they took their case to the High Court.
‘The bank does not own my property’
According to a recently released High Court decision, Justice Dani Gardiner held a telephone conference on June 6, where O’Connell’s position could be heard by all parties.
The court was also referred to a Facebook post she made, where she invited supporters to join her at the house.
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There are two posts still on her Facebook page, in which she did a “call out” for support, saying “all I know is that the supposed settlement is Tuesday 20 May 2025 – tomorrow”.
She said the purchasers had “made a deal with the devil” and that “the bank does not own my property, I have no business with you and I am not bound by any contract you made”.
She posted that she “would appreciate some support at my home … tomorrow afternoon … tomorrow night and for the next couple of days”.
While not discussed in the High Court judgment, there was also a livestreamed Facebook interview that O’Connell did with Counterspin Media where she explained her views on the “alleged debt” owed to the bank.
In it, she said she had paused her mortgage repayments while the bank refused to provide her with documentation she had requested and answer questions she had.
Judge: Any issues are between her and the bank, not the new owners
The judge summarised O’Connell’s position as primarily taking issue with the mortgagee sale process conducted by ASB.
O’Connell told the court she’d tried to “negotiate a solution” for two years, had not consented to the mortgagee sale and said ASB went ahead with the sale anyway.
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.Terina O’Connell says she had not consented to the mortgagee sale but ASB went ahead with it anyway. Photo / Hannah Bartlett
She also said ASB’s solicitor advised her of the settlement date, but said she was told the couple’s lawyer would contact her about vacating.
She said that never happened and, the day after settlement, the new owner arrived at the property, followed by security guards and police, and she had been “harassed”.
She rejected the couple’s claim that her presence at the house, with others, had posed a risk of damage to the property, adding they were there to “support her through this stressful time” and that she would experience emotional and financial hardship if forced to leave.
But Justice Gardiner’s decision said the Browns were the registered owners and any issues that O’Connell had before the mortgagee sale were “between her and ASB”.
“These issues do not affect the plaintiffs’ legal ownership of the property,” Justice Gardiner said.
The judge said while it may have been unfortunate if O’Connell had been unaware the couple intended to take possession of the property immediately on settlement, that was the usual case.
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She also accepted there was a risk of damage to the property by O’Connell or her supporters.
The High Court judgment also noted that while O’Connell remained at the property, the couple were in breach of their insurance policy, as they couldn’t change the locks or get an electrical warrant of fitness.
They were also unable to rent the property to service their mortgage, which placed them at risk of default.
The judge made an order requiring O’Connell and any other occupants to vacate the property by Monday, June 9.
There has been a slight increase in the number of mortgagee sales this year. Photo / 123rf
Are mortgagee sales on the rise?
Cotality New Zealand data showed a “minor lift” to 81 mortgagee sales in the second quarter of this year, up on the previous quarter when there were 52.
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This marked the highest number of mortgagee sales since the fourth quarter of 2023, when there were 101 mortgagee sales.
However, Cotality head of research Nick Goodall said the number was “still very low in a longer-term context, especially compared to the Global Financial Crisis”.
“I think this illustrates a more stable financial lending environment over the last decade or so, as well as the willingness and ability of banks to work closely with borrowers who may be struggling, rather than resort to mortgagee sales, which doesn’t really benefit either party.”
OneRoof has 58 properties currently listed as “mortgagee sales” in New Zealand, with the total number of properties listed sitting just over 38,000.
New Zealand Banking Association chief executive Roger Beaumont said banks are responsible lenders and typically have dedicated teams to deal with those experiencing financial difficulty and mortgagee sales were “rare and always a last resort”.
“There are several options that banks may offer … depending on their particular circumstances. That may, for example, include temporarily moving to interest-only repayments.”
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Beaumont said in the six months from July to December 2024, there were 1.4 million home loans across 1.1 million customers.
“As an indication of potential financial issues, of the total number of home loans in that period, 17,445 loans switched from principal and interest repayments to interest-only repayments.”
Hannah Bartlett is a Tauranga-based Open Justice reporter at NZME. She previously covered court and local government for the Nelson Mail and before that was a radio reporter at Newstalk ZB.