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Property developer Lily Zhong has been judged bankrupt and owes at least $6 million.
The adjudication for bankruptcy was made in the High Court at Auckland yesterday, following an order gained by architectural firm Sang Architects requiring her to pay it $110,000.
It was not the only creditor in the queue. Last month, troubled finance company Hanover Finance gained a summary judgment ordering Zhong's company, Winsun Developments, to repay $5 million it owes on the 153-unit Winsun Heights development.
Zhong borrowed $9 million from Hanover to develop the Vincent St apartment block, but not all the units sold and money was outstanding after it was finished.
Hanover took swift action by calling a mortgagee sale on 92 of the apartments, but that led to only partial repayment.
Winsun is now in receivership and liquidation, and also owes Inland Revenue $290,004 and unsecured creditors $397,445.
Zhong also owes Queensgate Centre Limited, owned by shopping mall company Westfield, $850,000.
Lawyers for Zhong's various creditors said they had difficulty tracking her down in order to serve the bankruptcy notice. In the end they got court permission to attach it to the front door at her last known address.
The Fitzroy Hotel, another one of Zhong's developments, went to mortgagee sale last month. She had planned to build apartments on top of the historic hotel in Wakefield St, despite considerable opposition from heritage campaigners.
