With the national median house value sitting on a high $610,000 and the cost of brand new buildings heading north, savvy buyers are investigating the house moving market.
House movers buy unwanted houses – in sizes that range from a granny flat to a mansion - and relocate them to the yard. These houses are on the market for removal at a much cheaper price than a brand new build, to be delivered to a new location for renovation.
The house moving market is a fluid one, says Kumeu-based Craig Walker from Craig Walker Building Removals. Just like any other real estate market, the moving market fluctuates depending on trends, council regulations, mortgage rates and lending criteria
“Everybody thinks that when a real estate market crashes everybody is running to the house yard to buy a cheap relocatable and it’s inaccurate because nobody spends money in the recession.”
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Trends come and go but Walker says buyers are always keen to get their hands on anything with heritage.
“Villas, bungalows, tasty little pieces from Remuera – we want to get our hands on it,” he says, particularly if the house still has original features and was a quality build.
“These are well sought after, “he says. “A [relocated] villa on a lifestyle block is hell of a lot cheaper than building a house from new and it looks good. It has a touchy-touchy, feel good factor.”
Most of Walker's buyers are from Waikato, looking for cheap homes and sleep-outs to put on rural and lifestyle properties. He says this is less common now in Auckland as undeveloped rural land is hard to find.
“I personally think that lifestyle block has taken a little bit of a hammering. Kiwis are changing. The dream used to be to have a block out in the country, but now the dream house is a nice apartment close to the latte shops. It’s generational.”
Walker says that about five per cent of their buyers go for old homes because it’s a way to get the vintage architecture of a character house, but the rest of the market is people driven by finding a bargain.
“The character buyers would rather drive in a 1969 Mustang than a new Toyota Corolla.” he says.
The house moving market is a lot busier in the South Island, but the trends are similar.
King House Removers co-owner Warren Willis says there are currently 90 homes on their yard in Invercargill.
Willis and his team sell and move homes all over Southland and Otago with many relocated from Christchurch red-zone to Central Otago to avoid demolition.
Trends don’t matter; the company would take any home as long as it’s tidy.
“Since the earthquakes everyone wants a nice house, something that’s double glazed and tidy. A lot of it has come from Christchurch, we start from two- bedroom homes and sometimes it’s five-bedroom villas.”
In an area where median prices for property range from $315,000 in Invercargill to $630,000 in Central Otago’s booming Cromwell is, money saving is the main drive for buying a relocated home. The buildings can cost between $50,000 and high $100,000s depending on configuration. Buyers then need to figure in the costs of consents, transport and hook up to utility services, as well as building renovations costs.
“Sometimes people can set themselves up for $150,000, excluding land,” says Willis. “There are a lot of people looking for accommodation and that’s where transportable homes will be a good option. They can find section, subdivide it and put two houses on it.”
Unlike Auckland, moving and renovating an old house is a challenge that young people will take on in the south as a foot on to the property ladder.
Willis says that a younger generation is interested in buying cheap sections in Invercargill and transporting a house on to it, while the older generation wants to get rid of the old home to free up space for a new build.
“We do take a lot of houses off North Invercargill where it’s a bit more expensive and people put a new build there instead.”
However, someone’s old home is another person’s dream project, Willis says.
“They are nice homes and people would spend $50,000 on fixing the inside and a couple of years later can afford to build a new home.”
