Millionaire financial adviser Gareth Morgan is sticking to his claims some developments in Wanaka and Queenstown are selling for bargain basement prices.
Mr Morgan said on Wednesday he was ready to close a deal on a "very big" Wanaka development and buy a property for a quarter of its valuation price.
He claimed the Wanaka development was going so cheap because its vendors were feeling the pinch as international financial markets begin to unravel.
When the Otago Daily Times contac-ted Mr Morgan on Wednesday night he refused to reveal what the Wanaka-based property was, fearing it would compromise the deal.
"Basically, it's a leveraged developer type property and the bankers have said get rid of it or we'll shut you down."
Mr Morgan claimed the Central Otago property market was over-leveraged and developers around Wanaka and Queenstown were selling at bargain basement prices.
Contacted again yesterday, Mr Morgan stood by his claims but refused to discuss his impending buy-up.
He had received two emails from significant Queenstown-based developments who "have had the rope pulled on them" by finance companies since his appearance on Campbell Live.
"It's the tip of the iceberg. Of course, the developers, sellers and real estate agents are going to claim everything is all right. They'll continue to do so until the day before they go under."
It was "relatively easy" to identify which developments were under pressure, when one looked into the different finance companies involved with such deals, he said.
His claims have been rejected by Wanaka-based developers and real estate agents contacted by the Otago Daily Times yesterday.
Infinity Investment Group Holdings Ltd said they had not been in touch with Mr Morgan and none of their various Wanaka-based developments were on the market.
Infinity Ltd spokeswoman Hetty Van Hale said the company's managing director, Bob Robertson, thought it was "ludicrous" a significant development in Wanaka was going for only 25% of its valuation.
Willowridge Developments Ltd director Allan Dippie said his company was in expansion mode and looking for opportunities in a local market "relatively sheltered" from the financial crisis overseas.
Central Otago Real Estate Institute of New Zealand spokesman Ross Rainsford said people were still lining up to buy into the region, but some developers in Queenstown were feeling the pinch.
