West Harbour

Including Hobsonville, Whenuapai and Herald Island

This used to be a disparate group of suburbs - the shiny new West Harbour, the hippy Herald Island and the airforce base of Whenuapai. Now this area at the top of the Waitemata Harbour is happily morphing into a unified spot with lots of lifestyle choice. It's edge-of-suburbia living with sea views and with market garden stalls, plant nurseries and a fabulous marina. West Harbour's elegant enclaves of large brick and tile homes have aged nicely. Whenuapai is one of Auckland's best-kept secrets, with some of the finest waterfront properties hidden beyond its mature trees. In Hobsonville, rural properties along Scott Rd offer prestigious buying; and while they're still pretty rustic, the baches of Herald Island are being joined by new designer houses.

Amenities: There's no local secondary school. Ex-airforce land has been bought for a state secondary, but a decision on its future is not likely until early next year. Plans for a private secondary school to be known as Sutherland College in Brighams Creek Rd are with the council for resource consent. In the meantime, older children bus to secondary schools in Takapuna, Te Atatu and Henderson.

Westgate is the retail centre of choice. Shops in Hobsonville, West Harbour and Whenuapai cater for most needs. There's a range of marine-related services at the 600-berth Westpark Marina, and plans for expansion.

Stroll through Westpark Marina for boating eye-candy or take the coastal walkway from the marina to enjoy the views. Throughout West Harbour there are playgrounds and parks, including Luckens Reserve which meanders down to the water.

Trends: In West Harbour, the best properties near the water's edge have had their own mini-boom.

Whenuapai sales suffered with talk of the air force base becoming a commercial airport.

Conversely, the construction of a second Greenhithe bridge to speed access to the North Shore has helped values. There's Asian interest in rural blocks, with a trend towards consortiums of buyers purchasing rural land that may someday be able to be subdivided for residential development.

Top prices are nudging $3 million for water's edge land along Scott Rd in Hobsonville. One owner turned down $6 million for a 4ha block of land.

As a general rule there's nothing on the water's edge in Whenuapai for less than $1.8 million. On West Harbour's esplanade strip, sales tags read $1.5 million and more.

Rental and investment: There's a limit to what renters will pay, and $650 a week appears to be it.

Best streets Mansion Court and Courtneys in West Harbour; Scott Road in Hobsonville; Pohutukawa Road and Totara Road in Whenuapai.