Take the low road

Affording your own bach these days means going off the beaten track and checking out those less popular areas. By VICKI HOLDER.

Don't take the scenic route if you're on the lookout for an affordable waterfront bach. That's what everybody else has done so you'll pay moonbeams for them. Instead, hunt out those little out-of-the-way places that are still relatively undiscovered.

You could easily be tempted by the affordable magic of Cornwallis, a little waterfront community accessed through Titirangi at the northern end of the Manukau Harbour. Bayleys is advertising an untouched classic Kiwi bach on the sandy shoreline with just a reserve between it and the water. And they're expecting around $500,000.

Manager of Bayleys Titirangi office, Lynn Lacy-Hauck, says: "It has a feel of the 50s - the real deal, where we used to stay as teenagers. A black creosote bach, it's had one lady owner for 40 years. There are others in the bush, but to get this close to the water is very rare."

She doesn't know why the values out her way are lower, "but they are, and it's great buying".

Laingholm, says Lacy-Hauck, is another very affordable beachfront area beyond Titirangi. You can buy for around $400,000 but it has become quite suburban in recent years.

Claire Miller of Bayleys recommends the Awhitu Peninsula, also on the west coast on the Manukau Harbour side. She has a bach for sale at Matakawau Bay, about one and a quarter hours away from Auckland, for just $550,000. "You get a quarter acre with a typical Kiwi bach and water access to a sandy beach. It's like Whitianga 10 years ago. It's just amazing."

She says a lot of farmers used to have waterfront baches on their properties and when the children grow up they cease to use them as much, so they come up for sale.

Stuart Goodare of Ray White, Papakura, has a property for sale in Kawakawa Bay, half an hour south of Howick, for around $500,000 or less. It's even cheaper further south at Orere Point, he says. "It's undiscovered. There are beach houses there for less than $500,000 and that's pretty close to the city."

The reason for the less expensive price tag he puts down to the fact the area is tidal. In Kawakawa Bay, there has been an issue with sewage, which will be addressed over the next 18 months.

Goodare also suggests people go looking south of Raglan at Kawhia Bay, a big, west coast harbour near Te Awamutu that many people simply don't know about. Ross Ralston of Waipa Property Link is one of the few agents to work the area. He says there are only about 10 waterfront properties - half baches, half larger homes - and they rarely come up for sale. But he does have a bach for sale at $375,000. The beach is tidal, rising and falling by 3m, which puts some people off. Ralston says closer to Raglan, in Aotea Harbour, he is marketing a subdivision with properties for sale with great water views from $180,000 to $250,000.

Further north, Bayleys recently sold a bach on the beach 15 minutes from Whangarei for $425,000. "There are still some affordable places," says Miriam Staite, Whangarei office residential manager. "A bach like this would have been under $200,000 a couple of years ago. They have lifted incredibly, but to Aucklanders they are affordable. They're also selling to locals who see them as investments for the holiday market and they enjoy them through the year."

To Staite, the Whangarei Harbour offers incredible value. "Local people love it. It's a real playground, but people travelling north bypass it and head to Tutukaka or the Bay of Islands. People don't venture out there because it's not on the scenic route. We have 100 beaches in the harbour where you can fish and swim. Baches come up for sale and we have to canvas quite thoroughly to attract buyers. It's a totally underrated area, just two and a half hours from Auckland's CBD, and properties are still affordable."

An alternative for those who want a beach holiday and don't mind sharing is purchasing in a beachfront apartment complex. If you're keen on Tutukaka, there are still apartments available at the new Oceans resort starting from $385,000 (see page 21). Club Marina, a new development on the drawing board, offers further choice, and the 30-year-old Pacific Rendezvous motel complex on the cliff, with views over the marina, has a unit for sale for $380,000.

Simon Martin of Harcourts, Whakatane, sees a trend towards replacing the family bach with the family managed unit. For roughly the same price as a bach, you can get a no-maintenance unit close to beaches, shops and cafes, which is managed by an agent and rented out when you're not using it. "A lot of families used to go on holiday and spend half their time cleaning and clearing the property, then head back to the farm for more work. They're taking this option so they can forget about the milking and just relax," he says.