Now the sixth largest suburb in Tauranga and still growing, Bethlehem wasn’t even a town at the beginning of last century. The cluster of dairy farms developing on river flats by the tidal Wairoa River included the land that had been confiscated from local Maori by the government, following the 1864 land wars.
Terracing on the hills marks the site of the local pa, where stone tools and shell middens are still found occasionally.
Growth was slow until the early 1990s, the town provided typical sleepy country life: diving into the river, picking fruit from one of the many local orchards and attending historic Bethlehem School, established in 1883 as a native school.
Nowadays the school has grown to around 500 students as the town transitioned from quiet rural outpost to a city suburb. Building began in earnest around 2000 and most of the current housing stock was built between then and 2009.
Start your property search
Large subdivisions were opened up and although the land supply is finite, construction continues today.
Who lives here and what do they do?
Many Bethlehem residents are down sizers from Tauranga or even Auckland, along with retiring farmers from around the Bay of Plenty.
Bethlehem is popular with families too, attracted by the strong community spirit and good schools. Commuting to work in the city is generally quick and easy.
What’s to love?
As Bethlehem has grown, so have the amenities on offer.
The local retail centre has significantly grown in the last two decades, with the usual round of supermarkets and chain-store Kmart in the Bethlehem Town Centre complex, plus hairdressers, banks, healthcare centres, gym, fast foods, cafes and boutiques.
Bethlehem’s location between Wairoa River and Tauranga Harbour puts it within easy distance of multiple attractions.
Residents can easily indulge in fly fishing, diving, walking and hiking without having to travel too far and the Waimarino Adventure Park is on the banks of the river.
In the retirement complexes - there are three in Bethlehem and two in neighbouring Pyes Pa - every imaginable activity is on offer, with residents barely needing leave their own villages.
Given its retired population, service clubs are very active and well-supported in Bethlehem and many of the churches offer community activities. Local wineries Mills Reef and The Bethlehem have restaurants and cellar door sales but there are remnants of the suburb’s old rural root too: quality fruit at great prices can often be found by the side of the road outside local orchards.
Buying and selling
Bethlehem enjoyed huge leaps in house prices in 2015 and 2016 but growth has slowed somewhat since, with the suburb’s current median value sitting at $784,000 - pretty much where it was 12 months ago.
Craig Hilton, principal and Bethlehem branch manager at Eves Real Estate, says that while market activity in Bethlehem has been quiet, his agents are still kept busy. “There’s always a requirement for quality housing and people know that they’ll find it here,” he says.
“Demand is still greater than supply and everything we list gets good attention and sells well, usually within about 30 to 40 days.
“In terms of price, it’s been steady for the past 12 months, with just a small rise overall.”
He says that sales of family houses in Tauranga continue to feed in new residents for Bethlehem’s retirement villages. “It’s all part of the cycle.”
Hilton says that while property investors across the board are feeling the impact of new rules and requirements he still sees a number of potential landlords.
“I think a lot are selling up a couple of their older investment properties elsewhere, rather than insulating them, then buying in Bethlehem at a higher level because the demand is here, and they can potentially enjoy greater yields,” he says.
“And while it’s true that Bethlehem now has as many dwellings, more or less, as it ever will, an interesting new phenomenon is buyers picking up houses that were built in the first stages of the suburb’s development and renovating them.
“These properties are 25 years old, and often a bit dated so doing them up is a very worthwhile exercise.”
