CHB and Wairoa house prices up more than $100k

BIG ATTRACTION: Property Brokers Wairoa office manager Vern Withey has seen a lot of movement in the housing market. PHOTO / WARREN BUCKLAND.

Hawke's Bay's rural districts look to be the big winners in the region's electric housing market - with averages prices in Wairoa jumping $135,000 from last year, and Central Hawke's Bay prices are not far behind.

Latest figures from the Real Estate Institute show that at the end of last month the median house price in Wairoa rose from $135,000 in February last year to $270,000.

Similarly, prices in CHB rose $100,000 to $285,000, while the median price in Napier city rose $80,500 to $480,000, and in Hastings, last month's median price of $445,000 jumped $69,000 from last year.

"It's about time Wairoa caught up too," Wairoa Mayor Craig Little said.

"We have some really good houses in town, there's some lovely places and it's a lovely town."

Mr Little said the council had been trying to make the Wairoa township more appealing to people.

"For the last three or fours years we've been trying to be a can-do council where we can make it easy for people to come to town and that mean doing things to make our town as good as any other town.

'We've got the new destination playground, we've got the community centre - we've upgraded that.

"A lot of people are retiring here too, that's a fact. I've heard of people in Auckland who have had a mortgage on their house, sold up, come down here and had money in the bank."

Property Brokers regional manager Paul Whitaker said Wairoa was at present, the "smart choice nationwide" for astute investors.

"Probably Wairoa is probably where the opportunity lies for the astute investor at the moment, not just within Hawke's Bay but nationwide."

CHB Mayor Alex Walker said the growth in people coming into the district was a reflection of the area's rural charm and community spirit.

"We are seeing large numbers of new people in our district from all walks of life, and they are adding huge, huge colour to our community.

"What we are seeing is actually recognition of Central Hawke's Bay as an attractive, small town rural environment to live in. It's affordable and it's a great place to live with strong community."

Napier Mayor Bill Dalton said the main attraction for people to move to Napier was nature and the city's climate.

"But we like to enhance what nature has given us. So, we have gone out of our way to make this an attractive place to retire to, an attractive place to bring their businesses to and we're seeing a great deal of that, and that's being reflected in house prices."

Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said the district council was focused on making the district a fantastic place to live, work and play.

"We are truly blessed with the environment we have – a warm climate, easy access to beaches, beautiful parks and an abundance of fresh, local produce.

"We are working alongside businesses to help them establish or expand their operations in our district. We have an enviable lifestyle; we hear stories all the time of people attracted here away from the big centres because of what our region has to offer, and a big part of that is our affordable housing market.

"We want this lifestyle to be attainable to anyone wishing to live here, which is why council is focused on ensuring there is an adequate supply of land for residential development, including affordable housing."