Top of the plots

Marine parade in Herne Bay. Photo / Janna Dixon

Eat your heart out, Remuera. The tree-lined streets of Auckland's most noted, refined suburb - home to the city's moneyed for generation upon generation - have, for the moment, taken a back seat to three property-league upstarts.

Herne Bay stood out in the last quarter as the suburb with the most expensive homes - topping $1.5 million for an "average" house.

The assessment came from QV's E-Valuer, which places individual values on most New Zealand homes on the basis of recent comparable sales and capital value. And it was supported by other data which put the Herne Bay median selling price - on just 15 properties - at spot on $1.5 million.

Remuera, containing many of the country's most expensive homes, was back in fourth place at a touch under $1 million on average, weighed down a little by a stock of slightly more modest properties than Herne Bay.

In second place was Parnell, home to Prime Minister John Key and enjoying a 2.1 per cent gain for the quarter, with Takapuna also nudging over the $1 million average-home mark. Epsom and Mission Bay, with Devonport tucked in behind, were the other high-flyers.

At the other end of the scale, Otara's average fell just beneath the $250,000 mark. Manukau and the southern fringes of Greater Auckland filled nine of the 10 positions in the bargain-basement list, with Wellsford the odd one out.

Homeowners in those areas may look forlornly at the rich list, and if they do their eyes might zero in on number 10.

Ponsonby, with an average value of nearly $850,000 last quarter, was a down-and-out suburb 40-odd years ago; tired and tenanted. Then people started seeing the light.