Oh we do like to be beside the seaside

For many people, the first appearance of sunshine prompts thoughts of summer holidays at the beach.

But is it worth buying your own slice of coastal property?

New data from Homes.co.nz shows some coastal areas are still relatively affordable, but you’ll have to be willing to travel a bit to get to them.

You could buy a property in Te Kopuru, on Northland’s Poutu Peninsula, for a median $264,286. Opononi, also on Northland’s east coast, has a median of only $269,190. Kai Iwi, near Wanganui, also has a median of $175,553.

Homes.co.nz spokesman Jeremy O’Hanlon said Foxton was an affordable, accessible option for those in the lower half of the North Island.

‘‘Within a couple of hours, and for around $250,000, you can be relaxing at the beach,’’ he said.

‘‘There are still relatively low-cost waterside towns compared to Auckland and Wellington prices, but you need to be willing to travel a little more, or forgo a pristine sandy beach.’’

He said buyers who wanted anything closer to Auckland or Wellington would need to be prepared to spend at least $800,000, or consider renting.

Omaha, Langs Beach and Opito Bay were the most expensive seaside areas, with median prices all above $1 million.

Infometrics forecaster Mieke Welvaert said the holiday home market was changing thanks to platforms such as Airbnb, which allow short-term rentals.

‘‘Previously, staying at a bach often involved owning it yourself or knowing someone that had a bach you could use. Airbnb circumvents these options for people wanting to stay in a bach, but not own one,’’ she said.

‘‘As a result, we could expect to see reduced ownership demand from people only wanting to stay in a place at a particular time of the year. This will put downward pressure on bach prices.’’

But she said it also created an opportunity for those who wanted a different type of investment.

‘‘On the other hand, the existence of Airbnb means you have a greater potential for financial return if you own a bach. This potential for financial gain could be enough of an incentive for more people to want to own a bach.

‘‘As a result, the number of bach buyers might instead increase, and thus drive up prices.’’

If you bought a holiday home with a $500,000 mortgage, you would need to be able to rent it for $130 a night for 300 nights of the year to cover your mortgage payments and Airbnb fees. That does not include any maintenance or other upkeep costs.

Property tax expert Mark Withers said he had several clients who had to consider registering for GST because their income from a single bach had hit $60,000.

He said mixed-use asset rules, which came into effect in the 2014 tax year, made it more important that bach rentals were run seriously.

‘‘The impact of the mixed-use asset rules is to reduce tax deductions that were previously available for days when the property is ‘vacant but available’. It also ring-fences losses from bach renting if the gross rent is less than 2 per cent of the property’s CV,’’ he said.

‘‘It still works fine for people who are genuine and serious about getting rental income but has taken tax savings away from those that were half-hearted about the rent and just content to claim tax losses.’’

He said holiday houses that made the most money were those in places that had year-round tourist appeal, such as Waiheke, Queenstown or Rotorua, and could be booked by locals at weekends.

‘‘Some councils are now imposing special rate levies on dwellings that are rented like this due to pressure from the commercial accommodation sector as Airbnb impacts them.’’

Bindi Norwell, chief executive of the Real Estate Institute, said buyers should consider whether they would be affected by loan-to-value rules which require investors to have at least a 40 per cent deposit.

It was also worth considering how they would manage any required maintenance.

Her organisation’s statistics showed strong price growth in Coromandel, Queenstown, Taupo and the Far North.