- Nikki Connors’ company was found to have given misleading information, resulting in a $136,671 compensation order.
- Connors was removed from the Financial Service Providers register but continues promoting overseas property investments.
- The Financial Market Authority warns investors about the risks of working with overseas brokers or advisers.
A Kiwi who complained to a financial ombudsman that New Zealand’s former “queen of property”, Nikki Connors, gave misleading financial advice is “annoyed and disgusted” that Connors appears to be targeting investors for overseas real estate opportunities.
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The woman’s complaint was partially upheld, with Connors’ company, Propellor Property Investments Limited, found in November 2024 to have given misleading information about the potential capital growth of a recommended property investment.
The Financial Services Complaints Limited said the company used outdated and incorrect information and ordered it to pay $136,671 in compensation. Connors was subsequently removed from the Financial Service Providers register.
OneRoof reported last month that Connors had been promoting herself online as a property broker based in Dubai.
The Facebook account Nicolette Invest Dubai was deleted after the OneRoof article was published, but a related Instagram account, Nicolette Invest UAE, is still active and features posts highlighting Connors’ work with US and Australian investors. There are no references to Connors working with New Zealand investors in the posts.
A photo of Connors that accompanied a recent Facebook post on the now-deleted Nicolette Invest Dubai page. Photo / Facebook
Connors told OneRoof in a statement that she did not provide regulated financial advice in New Zealand or elsewhere, and that her role as a broker was “analysing and advising on international off-plan property markets and development opportunities”.
“I have not operated in the New Zealand financial advice market for over two years, and my professional work is now focused internationally.”
She said the complaint to the financial ombudsman related to an off-plan property investment that was purchased before the Covid pandemic, when the economic environment was different. She said she had been surprised by the outcome, given the “circumstances surrounding the matter were complex” and the “significant market changes that occurred during that period”.
“As you will appreciate, global property markets changed dramatically during and after the pandemic, and in this case, the investment outcome did not meet the client’s expectations in that altered market.”
The complainant told OneRoof that she was still upset by the incident. Connors, she said, never paid her and her partner the $136,671 they were awarded.
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The woman said she had trusted Connors, but claimed that all the advice Connors had given her was wrong, telling OneRoof that she regretted not doing more research on Connors.
She said she was stuck with a property that was worth at least $100,000 less than what she paid. “We would lose a shed load of money [if we sold it now].”
The woman said she had been following recent social media posts featuring Connors and was surprised she was still promoting herself as a property investment expert. “It’s been really, really difficult. It does annoy me she’s still carrying on ..." the woman told OneRoof.
“I think she’s left us in a terrible financial position – I don’t know what I’m going to do ... she’s doing all that, living the life, owes money everywhere and thinks she can carry on doing that. I think it’s disgusting, to be honest.
“She’s left us very stressed, financially insecure because we don’t know what’s going to happen to it [apartment].”
Connors’ companies, Propellor Property Services and Propellor Property Investments, have been liquidated. Connors told OneRoof that over $130,000 that was owed to the IRD and a handful of unsecured creditors was still “relatively minor” given Propellor Property Investments was a “multimillion-dollar company”.
A spokesperson for Financial Services Complaints Limited confirmed to OneRoof that Connors’ deregistration did not stop her from working as a financial adviser outside of New Zealand. However, Connors was prohibited from providing financial services to clients based in New Zealand.
The Financial Market Authority is responsible for investigating any potential breaches of the law.
The FMA would not comment on the investigations or engagements it might have with organisations or businesses. However, Michael Hewes, director of deposit-taking, insurance and advice, warned investors who were considering working with overseas brokers or advisers to exercise caution. Protections differed between jurisdictions, and New Zealand investor safeguards may not apply when dealing with offshore providers.
Hewes said if a deregistered or unlicensed person continued to provide advice to New Zealand clients, then the FMA might investigate, with offenders in line for penalties of up to $200,000.
However, he noted that not all property-related activities came under the umbrella of financial services, pointing to general property coaching or education where no financial advice or lending is provided.
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