Upper East Coast Bays - An exclusive extract

Including Browns Bay, Waiake, Torbay, Pinehill, Long Bay and Okura

A couple of local events say it all: in March, there's the African street festival and then the Best of British Day in June. South Africans and Brits happily decamp here for the schooling, the kinship and holiday-style living.

There's a wide cross-section of ages, but it's a strong young family area (as evidenced by the budding gymnasts who whirl about the boat-shaped playground by the beach).

Buyers are often trading up to a coastal lifestyle from cheaper inland North Shore suburbs. Those concerned about schooling will settle for any style of house in the desired zone.

Sea views are the big focus anywhere along the bays. The large numbers of 1970s architecturally-designed family homes give the area a sense of individuality that is lacking in some parts of Torbay/Glenvar, where streets were defined by the housing development company of the day. Pinehill has big new homes popular with Asian buyers.

Browns Bays village now includes apartment complexes that have brought 300 more permanent residents into the retail centre. At the other extreme are the lifestyle blocks of Okura for those preferring wide open spaces.

Amenities
The predrominantly decile 10 neighbourhood is well served with at least six primary schools. Northcross Intermediate is the main intermediate. The local high school, Long Bay College, is renowned for its creative arts and technology teaching.

Browns Bay's shopping village is the retail hub of the East Coast Bays. With the beach just 100m away, it's a casual beachside shopping strip.

Torbay has a small shopping centre and several restaurants and takeaway bars.

For Okura and Long Bay residents, the nearest shops are Torbay, Albany and Northcross. From Browns Bay, Albany is only a quick drive along Oteha Valley Rd.

All the beaches are beauties, but Waiake Beach is the best. Its 1ha beachfront reserve has an impressive block of Phoenix palms and Norfolk pines, as well as being home to Torbay Sailing Club.

The hugely popular Long Bay Regional Park has a 1km-long golden beach, with a restaurant and playground and is within the Long Bay-Okura Marine Reserve. The Browns Bay beach has a reserve, playground and well-patronised boat club.

The northern East Coast Bays area has plenty of typically Kiwi sports grounds and clubs as well as the East Coast Bays Leisure Centre in Browns Bay. The Pupuke Golf Course is a couple of bays along at Campbells Bay.

Trends
For many years the upper bays lacked the appeal of those bays closer to Takapuna, but the tide is turning as premium clifftop properties here start to pull in ever-higher prices.

In Browns Bay, proposed zoning changes will free up light industrial properties for more apartments in the retail strip. Established apartments are on-selling for significant capital gain.

There's significant public interest in the council's Long Bay Structure Plan designed to achieve an integrated development of 360ha of land between Glenvar and Vaughans Rds.

Best Streets
Anything coastal, including Sharon Rd in Browns Bay, and Cliff Rd and Gilberd Pl in Torbay.