The listing for this two-bedroom Feilding property says not to let "minor inconveniences" like flooding put you off buying it. Photo / Trade Me
Imagine trying to sell your property for more than a decade.
There are five properties - a mix of houses and bare land - scattered throughout New Zealand that have been for sale on Trade Me for 10 years.
The oldest listing on the property section of the website is a two-bedroom property in Feilding dubbed "(Friendly) Feilding" that was listed on Trade Me for sale in September 2007.
The Lethbridge St property has an asking price of $465,000 - more than double its current capital valuation of $200,000 - and had been the owner's home for 36 years.
The listee, who goes under the listing name of Roly or Rogal, describes the property as being prone to flooding due to a swamp in the back paddock and no access to the sheds at the back, but plenty of off-street parking at the front. He even provides photos, date stamped between 2004 and 2013, to prove it.
"Core samples have been taken to confirm the depth of the marsh. Area of the section will change due to kerb and channel being removed to allow for another section between the existing houses. How is it that they can give permits for allowing houses to be built over main sewerage pipes!"
Images on Google Maps show the new house referred to in the building appears to have been built since the listing was made.
The listing tells people to "be in quick for a bargain" with rates of just $2,776. However the latest annual rates bill for the property according to the Manuwatu District Council website is $2908.01.
"Please don't be put off by these minor inconveniences! Thanks for viewing and have a HAPPY day," the ad concludes.
The owner declined to comment when approached by the Herald.
Meanwhile a bare section selling for $325,000 in the holiday hotspot of Matarangi in the Coromandel has also been on the market for more than 10 years. The current CV is $260,000.
The 775sq metre section on Kelly Jade Ave has views over the golf course and is located in a quiet cul-de-sac. It is being marketed by Richardsons Real Estate.
The section is an easy walk along the harbour path to the sandspit and beach, or to the restaurant and golf course, according to the ad.
Richardsons Real Estate marketing agent Keith Goodall said the Matarangi section was under offer and due to go unconditional any day after a long wait.
Goodall said the market crashed after 2007 and some vendors were not prepared to sell for less than they paid.
"[The market] stayed down in coastal areas - particularly this far from Auckland and the main centres for years and years and years. Probably value wise it didn't pick up again until 2015...
"In fact it's still not at the level where it was originally sold. And that particular vendor was simply not prepared to sell at the lower level that all the other sections were."
A larger lifestyle property titled Golden Bay Estate in the Tasman wanting enquiries over $1.5m - double its CV - has also been on the site for since April 2008.
"Income - Privacy - Self Sufficiency - this property has it all," according to the listing.
"There are not many of this kind of properties around in Golden Bay anymore."
The 235sq m home, boasting six bedrooms and two bathrooms, sits on 8.9ha and has great views of the sea, ranges and valleys.
The sheer size also makes it suitable for a small business or upmarket B&B, according to the listing.
The property is described as having two of the "best imaginable" buildings made from timber frame and straw clay infill to give superior insulation and living climate and being low-energy houses with a power bill of just $120 a year.
There is also a double garage, two separate sheds, plenty of sheltered courtyard areas, BBQ area, large glass house.
Meanwhile a 1675sq m section situated in Lake Ohau Alpine Village in Twizel with an asking price of $250,000 and 23ha of steep and rolling land marketed as being ideal for a first farm and based in Kataia in the Far North have also been on the site since mid to late 2008.
Demand for bonds may well stay strong, but there's a catch.