Lloyd Morrison investment firm Morrison & Co has tapped Craigs Investment Partners to investigate setting up a retail fund to take advantage of upcoming public-private partnerships.

New residential building consents climbed for a third straight month as a resurgent housing market stoked construction activity amid strong demand for property.

More needs to be done to address the growing concerns of an ageing group of home owners who will likely dominate the market in years to come, according to the Centre for Housing Research.

The minimum competency standards for financial advisers need to have a practical element and newcomers to the profession would benefit greatly if they had to go through a mentoring process, according to a past president of the Institute of Financial Advisers.

The minimum competency standards for financial advisers are only the beginning to get the ball rolling and future changes are on the horizon, according to the Code Committee.

Credit Union Baywide has been granted a strong enough credit rating to apply for the government's extension to the retail deposit guarantee, but has yet to make a final decision on whether it will sign up to the scheme.

Viaduct Capital, the finance company that was suspended by the government's deposit guarantee scheme earlier this year, has had a shake-up in its management team that has seen Bruce McKay and Richard Blackwood take over the reins.

The Code Committee for financial advisers may look at boosting the minimum competence standards for particular classes of authorised financial advisers, such as financial planners.

Central bank Governor Alan Bollard confirmed staff numbers were increasing as the Reserve Bank prepares to take on more regulatory roles, such as the oversight of insurance companies.

South Canterbury Finance, will seek cover under the government's extended retail deposit guarantee after it released a new prospectus earlier this week.

The housing market is posed for some challenging times and house prices will probably fall, according to the ANZ National Bank's eight property gauges.

Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard says that  the forthcoming non-bank deposit taking prudential regulations will not be a quick fix for the industry.

Whakatane-based non-deposit taker Asset Finance is one of the first to exit the government's deposit guarantee scheme.

The draft code of conduct for financial advisers is expected to be released by the end of the year, and the first discussion document on competency should be out in the next fortnight.

SBS, the bank that grew out of the Southland Building Society, has ruled out mopping up any failed finance companies as it looks to take advantage of any acquisition opportunities in the coming year.

Disclosure statements for authorised financial advisers should tell customers what they are able to sell rather than focus on what they are not allowed to under new regulations, according to the banks.