A coastal village in the Western Bay of Plenty is undergoing a massive transformation from a sleepy fishing village without a supermarket to a sought-after coastal area with a growing number of shops and two new schools on the way.
Ōmokoroa’s avocado farms and orchards have disappeared in the last few years making way for more than a dozen new subdivisions from affordable new-builds from around $800,000 as well as larger family homes.
Out-of-towners from Wellington, Waikato and Auckland have been moving into the area in droves with the number of residents more about doubling since 2018 when the census recorded there were just over 3000 residents living In Ōmokoroa.
And the town’s population is expected to double again in the next 20 or 30 years and several commercial developments are underway to meet the massive growth.
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When Your Realty salesperson Rachel Millard moved to Ōmokoroa 15 years ago, there were about 140 children at Ōmokoroa Point School at what she said was then a sleepy fishing village.
The school roll has ballooned out so much since then that it is at capacity and some children are having to attend the nearby rural schools until the new schools are built.
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Ōmokoroa finally got its first supermarket in 2016 and, now seven years on, a new commercial development called The Village is just months away from opening beside it bringing a range of new shops and services including The Coffee Club, Turkish To Go, The Ōmokoroa Vets as well as a gastro pub, restaurant, lawyer, bakery, hairdresser, beauty salon, dentist, gym and real estate agents.
Closer to the highway on the other side of the railway track, a new school primary school and secondary school on the corner of Prole Road and Ōmokoroa Road have just been confirmed and are due to open in 2026.
The land next door to the new schools has already been snapped up by a handful of big developers who have plans to build another commercial development and about 2500 more houses.
Millard said the village has grown quite quickly and is in time expected to be the Western Bay of Plenty’s second-biggest town after Te Puke.
Ōmokoroa is surrounded by water and many properties on the peninsula such as this house at 88 Hamurana Road have impressive sea views. Photo / Supplied
But despite its massive growth, Millard said it still has the caring community feel she was drawn to when she immigrated from the UK.
“We’ve still got the 'everyone looks out for everyone' type of village, but it is changing as we grow and that’s a natural progression, but it is managing to keep that feel to a certain extent and locals are really keen on keeping that.
“We’ve got an amazing volunteer network here and that does create warmth.”
The number of families looking to move into the area has eased off, she said, and those currently looking either want to retire or downsize. There are also several first-home buyers.
Since Covid house prices rose by 40%, but in the last year they had pulled back by about 20%, she said.
Entry-level homes in Ōmokoroa are priced around $600,000. This two-bedroom new-build on Western Ave has an asking price of $660,000. Photo / Supplied
A brand-new entry-level two-bedroom home at 15 Western Ave is priced at $660,000 and a three-bedroom home is $695,000, while a brand-new four-bedroom home at 69 Heartwood Avenue on a 606sqm site has an asking price of $949,0000.
Tremains salesperson Noel Benstead said the large number of new subdivisions have helped attract young families and active retirees to the area in the last seven to eight years.
“The demographic has changed from being a sleepy retirement village to being a lot more vibrant. There’s a mixture of not just retirees, but mature people that are still really active and into golf and tennis and cycling and the younger families coming in.”
People also liked the fact that it is still just a 25-minute drive from Tauranga.
“I think it’s a bit like the Whangaparaoa Peninsula north of Auckland where you are out of town a bit, but you are near the water. You’ve got water both sides, it’s friendly, there’s nice facilities for beach, boat ramp that sort of thing and you are in a friendly seaside community.
“Naturally, it’s beautiful. It’s lovely being near the water and lots of lovely views all around whether you live here or just driving around or going to the beach or the park and it’s still a really friendly nice place to live.”
While everywhere is close to the water, people are also spoiled for choice for homes with views, if their budgets can stretch to it. A 1980s four-bedroom, three-bathroom home at 88 Hamurana Road that backs onto the reserve walkway has an asking price of $1.495 million.
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