Falling back in love with the inner city

As inner city Auckland living develops more cachet, the number of residents living there has exceeded all expectations, says Auckland Council's Design Champion Ludo Campbell-Reid.

"I think there's been a real falling back in love with living and working downtown," he says. "The number of people living in the city centre has tripled in the last 12 years, from 10,000 to 30,000."

This follows what many perceive as the locale's downtrodden era, during which the state of Queen Street was widely bemoaned.

"Some would say Auckland's got a bit of swagger back," says Campbell-Reid. He foresees planned high-quality apartment developments drawing a broader range of people to live in the city - compared to previous growth spurts dominated by investors and student tenants.

"Developers tell us many more apartments are now going to owner-occupiers, professional couples or even retired couples looking for a change in lifestyle and much lower maintenance. Some of those baby boomers have got tired of cutting the grass and pruning the bushes. They're asking themselves, 'where's the buzz, where are the activities?"

He acknowledges business is vital in Council's Auckland City Centre Master Plan but doesn't want the term 'CBD' to overshadow the fact people live and play in the area too. With development of spaces friendly to children and older people, he says "we're starting to see families moving to the inner city."

Meanwhile buyer demand will continue to outstrip supply in Auckland's apartment pipeline for the foreseeable future, according to Gavin Lloyd, National Director of Residential Projects for the world's largest commercial real estate services and investment firm, CBRE.

Some 6,000 Auckland apartments will be built in the next three years. The largest chunk of that pipeline is CBD-based (as opposed to fringe and suburban locations); these developments tend to be larger and sell off the plans faster.

Lloyd says, on average, apartments sold off the plans are 30 per cent sold three months after launch: "However, better quality CBD projects such as Union Green or The Maritime Apartments can achieve 90 per cent sell-outs in three months."

"Of the inner city's pipeline of 2,681 units in 20 buildings, some will be retained by developers, 1,612 units have pre-sold and there are 387 left for sale. That's just 19 per cent remaining."

New inner city residents will be attracted from suburbs outside the inner city, areas of New Zealand outside Auckland and from overseas, he says.

"Downtown apartments attract a mix of buyers, including young families, professionals, couples and buyers looking for a new base following a change in circumstances. Investors also favour downtown due to its large supply of professional tenants and students.

"One of the biggest drivers is people - young, old, all ethnicities - wanting a better quality of life. Many work in the city and want to live close to work to eliminate hours of travel time."

He says young professionals, singles or couples, are looking for an affordable area with good amenities and want inner city apartments - as do 'empty nesters' downsizing with a cash surplus to fund retirement. Parents of students often buy an apartment while their children are at university rather than pay rent, either choosing to sell it after graduation or hold onto it as a long term investment.

First-home buyers of under-$550,000 apartments may qualify for the 10 per cent deposit under the Welcome Home Loan supported by Housing New Zealand. Off-plan apartments count as 'new-builds', meaning first-home buyers may be eligible for the maximum Kiwisaver Homestart grant, providing up to an extra $20,000 towards a couple's deposit or up to $10,000 per solo buyer.

CBRE has recently sold quite a few apartments to dual-residence owners who either want to spend weekends leaving the city or coming into it for entertainment and leisure.

"A young couple who work in Hamilton recently purchased an Auckland Downtown apartment in order to spend weekends here enjoying a more cosmopolitan weekend lifestyle with friends at Auckland bars and restaurants," says Lloyd. Others work and live downtown Monday to Friday but have a 'weekender' somewhere such as Waiheke Island or Omaha Beach.

Both Lloyd and Campbell-Reid predict demand for inner city Auckland apartments will continue to grow as new rail links, a light rail network and more waterfront refurbishment roll out.

The Maritime Apartments display suite at Level 2, 29 Anzac Avenue opens this weekend for pre-sale preview.
Viewing hours are today from 4pm-7pm and Saturday/Sunday 11am-4pm.
RSVP today at www.maritimeapartments.co.nz

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