It boasts several lakes, forest tracks, is centrally located and its house prices are that little bit cheaper than its neighbours.
The fact that Rotorua’s houses are cheaper has even surprised the city’s agency heads, who believe it offers a lot of potential especially when first homes can be snapped up from $450,000.
A slight drop in house prices since the beginning of the year means three-bedroom, one-bathroom homes in a number of its suburbs are now within reach.
And first-home buyers seem to be well aware of this as agents are noticing an increase in the number of people at their open homes over the past few weeks and many of them are people wanting to get on the property ladder for the first time.
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Harcourts Rotorua director Wayne Pamment said there are more first-home buyers than investors looking at the moment and there’s plenty of stock to choose from.
“If they are turning up to open homes, they are actually in the market and they are active and they’ve done their work with a mortgage broker.”
They usually have between $450,000 and $700,000 to spend, which could get them reasonably tidy three- and four-bedroom homes in most suburbs with the exception of the more exclusive areas such as Springfield, Otonga, Lynmore and Glenholme.
Pamment said Rotorua is a fantastic area for first-home buyers.
“If we compare against our neighbouring regions and cities, it’s got good value and good job prospects. You would have to say you can get much more bang for your buck than you can in Hamilton or Tauranga.”
Professionals McDowell Real Estate principal Steve Lovegrove said buying a house in Rotorua for around $500,000 was unheard of six months ago.
Rotorua Professionals McDowell Real Estate principal and auctioneer Steve Lovegrove: "You can get much more bang for your buck." Photo / Andrew Warner
“Now if your budget is in the $500,000s let's say even $500,000 to $550,000, you’ve got a fighting chance of finding something. Hey, it may not be in the best location or best condition, but you will find something in that range and we are seeing more of those buyers come out of the woodwork at the moment.”
For that price it would most likely be an older three-bedroom, one-bathroom property that might require a bit of “elbow grease”, he said.
Lovegrove said areas such as Hillcrest, Western Heights and Ōwhata are all good places for first-home buyers to look.
“Generally, the suburbs can be quite a wide-range mix. You can have million-dollar properties in Ōwhata and you can have $500,000 properties in Ōwhata – it just depends on what part of Ōwhata you want to be in.”
Lovegrove agreed with Pamment that property prices are more accessible in Rotorua, although he still found this surprising because the city is centrally located and a good place to live.
“I’m a massive believer in its potential. Geographically it’s got all its tourism stuff – it's got its mountain biking forest. But it’s also very accessible,” he said.
“I think it’s just its reputation for some of the things, especially at the moment, that’s going on in Rotorua around the homeless thing and people living in hotel and emergency housing. All those issues around Rotorua does affect the value of properties in Rotorua or the desirability of people wanting to be there.”
However, he thinks that may also play into the hands of first-home buyers if they buy now.
“At the moment it might be a good place for first-home buyers as that will resolve itself at some point and Rotorua will be back on the up and up.”
To help the large number of first-home buyers in the market, Ray White Rotorua decided to run seminars for them on how to secure a mortgage.
Principal and business owner Jacqueline O’Sullivan said a first-home budget in Rotorua is between $450,000 and $600,000 and they could buy in suburbs like Mangakakahi, Western Heights, Pukehangi and Ngongotaha.
There are a range of options for buyers and a lot more stock available, she added.
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