Featherston realty still the cheapest buy

GOOD VALUE: Featherston is Wairarapa's most affordable town this year

Featherston remains Wairarapa's most affordable town but a local real estate boss says towns throughout the area have something to offer buyers.

Featherston was the most affordable town in Wairarapa at the end of July, according to the latest QV.co.nz E-Valuer statistics, with the average value of a property $193,000. It was also the most affordable town in June 2014, when the average value was $189,100.

Harcourts managing director Prue Hamill said Featherston had always been Wairarapa's most affordable area.

She said it attracted people from Wellington because it was just over the hill.

Masterton's infrastructure and Martinborough's "quaintness" were attracting buyers to those areas, she said.

Wairarapa's most expensive town at the end of July was Greytown, according to QV, where an average home was worth an estimated $389,050. It was also the most expensive town last year, when the average was $381,250.

Ms Hamill said Greytown was close to rail and had some "gorgeous" houses and a lot of history.

She believed the whole of Wairarapa offered good value to buyers. Some house hunters had turned to Carterton as prices increased in Greytown.

Ms Hamill said the average house price in Carterton would be slightly higher than Masterton, yet Masterton had the area's main infrastructure, "so Masterton is extremely good buying".

QV national spokeswoman Andrea Rush said the most affordable areas to buy homes in New Zealand tended to be places where there was the lowest demand for housing and more than enough homes to meet supply. The quality of the housing stock and the desirability of the location were also factors.

Demand for housing could be impacted by the availability of jobs in a place at any given time. When there were fewer jobs, home values could decrease as people left an area to find work elsewhere.

"Home values in the Buller District are currently experiencing a downward trend in values due to a number of mine closures in the region. However, when the mining industry was booming there was a higher demand for homes and rental properties and thus home values increased during that period.

"Location can also make a difference because if homes are located with sea views and in popular holiday destinations, values might be higher due to demand from those wanting holiday homes as well as permanent homes."