Auckland apartment-buyers are more concerned about what their neighbours will be like than stunning views, new research has found.
A survey by Auckland Body Corporate found that compatibility with other apartment owners was the biggest influencing factor when it came to buying an apartment.
Also rating highly were security and access to shops, cafes and other amenities. Views ranked seventh in respondents' lists of priorities.
Auckland Body Corporate polled more than 800 of its body corporate clients in Auckland CBD and city-fringe locations. Survey respondents were asked to rank their top five choices from a comprehensive list. To assess all apartment locations equally, the purchase price was taken out of the survey format.
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Auckland Body Corporate chief executive Chris Newman said the results of the poll were surprising. "What we thought would have been the primary reasons for selecting an apartment were in fact well down the list,” he said.
The top seven influencing factors identified by the survey were:
• Compatibility with other owners and occupiers in the development;
• On-site security system;
• Proximity to retail amenities and food and beverage/hospitality outlets;
• Floor plan and size;
• The structural integrity and construction history of the building;
• For off-plan projects, the credibility and track record of the developer; and
• Views.
Mr Newman said the survey results suggested that a more mature demographic - those aged 40 to 65 - was now turning to apartment-living.
Among the apartment blocks managed by Auckland Body Corporate are the 8 Hereford Residences in the Karangahape Road precinct, The Beresford Auckland, Ariki and Aston complexes on the city’s inner-western fringe, The Grounds and Kerepiti developments at Hobsonville Point, and The Element and Mason Square condominiums on Auckland’s southern quarter.
“Our survey respondents ... wanted to know who else was living in the block, or for new build projects, who else had bought into the project,” Mr Newman said.
“Most urban dwellers have two or three neighbours on their property boundaries. Apartment owners have neighbours on the same floor, as well as above and below."
Mr Newman said the majority of apartment residents and owners surveyed - 84 percent - came from previous suburban addresses. "Most were from Greater Auckland, with only small percentages coming from elsewhere in the country, or from abroad,” he said.
He said the findings seemed to back up anecdotal evidence that many new apartment buyers are empty-nesters who are looking to down-size and move into the central city.
Mr Newman said he was encouraged to see how important the quality of the building construction was to buyers. "When we delved into this point further with survey respondents, it was clear that ‘leaky building syndrome’ is very much a consideration when it comes to the selection process and owners simply want peace of mind knowing they’re in a well-built dwelling," he said.
