An analysis of some of New Zealand’s most popular holiday hotspots has shown that while house prices around the country have risen significantly, the same is not necessarily true for some beach destinations. In fact, some holiday hotspots are now even more affordable than last year according to the latest data from the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand, source of the most complete and accurate real estate data in New Zealand.
Median prices in Oneroa a popular summer hotspot on Waiheke Island have seen affordability increase strongly with median prices decreasing by 16 per cent when compared to the same time last year (from $1,307,500 for the 3 months ending November 2018 compared to $1,100,000 for the three months ending November 2019).
Additionally, in Paihia, gateway to the Bay of Islands, affordability has increased with median prices now 13 per cent cheaper than they were the same time last year (from $620,000 to $540,000).
"Holidaying at the beach continues to be an important part of the Kiwi vernacular and with median prices rising across many parts of the country many people may have thought that the dream of a holiday home was out of their reach,"says chief executive at REINZ Bindi Norwell.
"However, this isn’t always the case as our research of holiday hotspot prices shows.
"A little bit of shopping around might just mean that a holiday home isn’t as far out of reach as people think. Even places such as Wanaka and Pauanui have seen affordability come back slightly over the past year," she continues.
However, given some holiday hotspots’ popularity, it’s not surprising that a number of locations also saw median prices increase over the last year.
"Ohope which was named New Zealand’s most loved beach in an AA Poll has seen median prices increase by 23 per cent from the same time last year (from $676,000 to $831,000). Additionally, Te Anau and Whangamata have both seen double-digit price increases up 21 per cent and 19 per cent respectively," continues Bindi.
"Omaha, which is New Zealand’s most expensive holiday hotspot, also saw median prices increase 2 per cent to $1,765,000 up from $1,725,000 at the same time last year. Although, still not as high as the record of $1,887,500 Omaha saw for the three months ending March this year," concludes Bindi.
