When economic calamity strikes, big cities tend to become magnets for populations in regional centres and rural communities. But the Covid-19 crisis could result in Kiwis heading in the other direction.
While employment opportunities will always be higher in New Zealand's major metros, the country's working from home experiment will be a catalyst for change.
Some city-dwellers will have come through the near-two-month-long lockdown thinking that life could be better and more affordable in regional centres that offer a healthier and more relaxed lifestyle. And that could be the boost those regional or fringe housing markets need.
Certainly, migration to more affordable regions had been a feature of the housing market during the boom but in six months leading up to the lockdown there had been resurgence in the Auckland market and a slowdown in the regions.
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But Covid-19 could change the minds of some buyers.
OneRoof figures show that before lockdown the median house value for central Auckland was just over $1 million, while the median value for Papakura, on the city's southern fringe, was $705,000. Even cheaper, and offering coastal living, are places like New Plymouth, where the median value is $465,000, or Gisborne, where houses can typically be found for $418,000.
Even Dunedin, New Zealand's hottest housing market going into the crisis, offers more house for less, with the South Island city's median value sitting at half of what it is in Auckland's city and North Shore suburbs.
Economics commentator Tony Alexander says people will be moving to the outskirts of cities or may even relocate to small and more affordable towns in the wake of Covid-19.
"The challenge there is regional air traffic will be less than it was in the past and it will make it more difficult and expensive if you still have to commute to work," he says, adding that the world becomes an oyster for those who don't need to travel for work.
Alexander says that work environments can change just as quickly as job descriptions and Kiwis may want to chase a different opportunity.
"In this age of changing technology and responsibilities it is only going to accelerate in the way we work and interact. And if you plumb all your equity into a region, you might be disconnecting yourself from the new opportunities that this will throw up."
Bayleys agent
real estate Kerry Low says affordable housing is Gisborne's strength, and its relative remoteness is boon post-Covid-19. She has seen an increase in enquiry from expats and buyers from outside the region, and says she has potential buyers driving from Auckland to view a property this weekend. "They might buy a bigger property in Gisborne, instead of Auckland, and get more bang for buck," she says.
New Plymouth's agent Mel Stevens, from Remax Team Realty, says the trend of people moving for the lifestyle and working remotely is picking up in Taranaki.
"It's about using technology to your advantage to live somewhere differently.People come here if they want to be close to the mountain, and surf, and be where living costs are more reasonable than in Auckland. We would be happier people if we don't get to spend hours in traffic each day," she says.
Mortgage broker Rupert Gough has worked remotely for years and relocated to a new family home in Tauranga just before the lockdown.
The founder of Mortgage Lab says there are now many ways to support businesses and workers who wish to embrace working from home.
“If you are looking to move to a remote location, you need to have a reliable and fast internet service to be able to work remotely. You need to find that balance of getting away but being able to stay connected,” he says.
Small things count as well. Gough can’t imagine working from home without noise-cancelling headphones. “It’s not necessarily for when you have something noisy but it’s about being able to concentrate. Whether you’re listening to music or just sitting there in the silence of you like.”
For those thinking of making the sea or tree-change, finding properties with a separate room for an office or a workshop space is key.
Gough says having a designated work room allows you to shift to a work mode easier. “It’s quite an old school way of thinking that you have to have to have an office at your house and I don’t think people have prioritised that in recent years because people are used to commuting to work” he says.
Interior designer and founder of PocketSpace Interiors Laura Lochhead, says many people need help setting their home workspaces properly. Too many work from their bedroom and, some even from the children's bedrooms.
“Some people don’t have a luxury of having an office, so it could be an area in your master bedroom, guest bedroom, underutilised hallway or even a little corner in the lounge but you need to have a look around and get rid of the distractions to make sure the space is productive,” she says.
