Dream of Kiwi bach lingers on

Price, cleanliness and availability are the main concerns of holiday-makers who rent baches.

And owners' main motivation for buying is pleasure first and investment second, a poll has found.

The snap poll of Coromandel visitors and bach owners also showed that many people who did not own holiday homes still had the dream.

Leslie Preston, general manager of Bachcare, a company that manages holiday homes, said her firm conducted a casual questionnaire of 124 people at Whitianga late last year.

"We wanted to better understand the holiday home market so we questioned holiday home owners, renters and those living in holiday communities in the Coromandel," she said.

"Renters expressed some concerns about renting holiday homes and listed price, cleanliness and availability as their top three worries, accounting for nearly 70 per cent of responses.

"Owners mainly own a holiday home for pleasure, but more than a quarter of the respondents indicated investment as well as pleasure is a motivator for owning a holiday home. Security and rates are the biggest concerns for holiday home owners."

Of the respondents who live on the Coromandel Peninsula, 47 per cent believe the concept of the Kiwi bach is dying. But only 32 per cent of visitors agreed.

"It was a surprise to find that the locals are more likely to think the ideal is dead. Rising prices, regulations and desire for more creature comforts are the main reasons people gave for believing the good old Kiwi bach has come to the end of its time."