Two freestanding houses influenced by affordable homes in mainland Europe have hit the market for sale in the heart of Ōtara in Auckland’s south.
And while the Lappington Road properties are low-cost, they don’t skimp on quality. Both come with under-floor heating – a rarity in Kiwi homes.
“The developer’s wife is Dutch and on their many visits [to the Netherlands] he was impressed by stepping stones for residents to get on the property ladder,” said Bonnie Garton-Stack from Bayleys, who is selling with colleague Carla Pedersen.
“First, a small studio or apartment, for your single years or as a couple, then a smaller house like this for when you are looking for a bit more room and to start a family, and so on.”
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The houses are priced at $585,000 and $595,000, which might fetch a one-bedroom apartment on the city fringes or a unit in other parts of Greater Auckland, Garton-Stack told OneRoof.
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Bayleys head of research Chris Farhi said less than one in 10 sales in Auckland in the last 12 months was in the sub-$600,000 price bracket.
“Most of the $500,000 to $600,000 sales were in South Auckland, West Auckland or Auckland CBD, and tended to be one or two-bedroom properties; cross-lease units, apartments or older homes.
“These properties in Lappington Road are quite exciting because they’re new and have a smart design.”
Ray White Manukau co-owner Tom Rawson said the sub-$600,000 market was strong in South Auckland, but while the area was still a mecca for first-home buyers those wanting to get in for under $600,000 might only have the rest of this year to buy at that price.
The Lappington Road homes boast a modern design and under-floor heating. Photo / Supplied
The houses were inspired by the affordable homes prevalent in the Netherlands. Photo / Supplied
That was because when interest rates started to fall, prices would likely move quickly and the sub-$600,000 door would close.
Many new-build, two-bedroom terraced homes were in that price range, but some larger, older homes were also selling for under $600,000.
“We sold a home on Willis Road for $576,000 in Papakura on Tuesday. It needed elbow grease but it had three bedrooms and a garage and was on a 462sqm freehold section.”
Sometimes maintenance on older homes had been deferred and were sold to the renovators, who did them up and then resold them, and that was good for the market.
A three-bedroom home on Willis Road, in Papakura, recently sold under the hammer for $576,000. Photo / Supplied
43 Matawhanga Drive, in Wattle Downs, is looking for buyer interest over $550,000. Photo / Supplied
New or near-new terrace houses were also popular and those fetching under $600,000 generally had two bedrooms upstairs, sometimes a second toilet, a car park, and a private courtyard.
Ray White has several for sale, including a two-bedroom near-new townhouse in Wattle Downs listed at enquiries over $550,000, and another two-bedroom new build in Mangere East, which is being sold by negotiation and headlined “owner says present your offer”.
Rawson said not long ago sub-$600,000 properties were selling for a lot more but they had come back in price.
Vendors with properties listed above $600,000 sometimes accepted lower amounts to move the stock and get on with their next project.
25 Ngae Place, in Mangere East, is at the affordable end of the market. Photo / Supplied
Where a family home might have an interest rate of 7%, a construction loan was in the double digits so a developer with five or 10 houses could be sitting around waiting for sales fully borrowed up at 10% or more.
“If you’ve got a first-home buyer or a serious buyer come along and they’re $5000 or $10,000 off the mark, well, that’s maybe another month’s interest for that property.”
Garton-Stack said the Lappington Road houses had replaced an old, abandoned residence, which had been stripped of its piping and wiring. “It had been sitting empty for a number of years, causing issues in the neighbourhood with local vagrants and kids,” she said.
“The local residents were very happy with the sale of the site and the removal of the existing house, with nearly all of them coming for a chat to find out what was going on.”
The developer who bought the site was a structural and civil engineer looking to develop housing developments at a lower sale point, she said, but the homes were not low-cost builds.
They had solid masonry exteriors, thermally broken argon gas-filled glazing and were insulated to future incoming standards, and there were quality fixtures and fittings.
“The developer has also included a north-facing operable skylight to ensure the interior of the house is flooded with light, another item not commonly found in terraced houses.”
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