First-time buyers find happiness in Westport
Being a musician, Daimon Schwalger never thought he’d be able to buy his own home, but a South Island move has made the quarteracre dream a reality.
His new career is taking off, locals are friendly and he pinches himself at the spectacular West Coast scenery surrounding his Westport home.
‘‘I thought I’d be renting for the rest of my life,’’ says the artist and music producerturned-videographer, who is best known for his decades-long career as The Nomad. ‘‘I was very successful as an artist; that doesn’t mean you make money.’’
Schwalger, who has just turned 50, and his wife, Prue Holms-Schwalger, bought a threebedroom, 160m2 villa on a 1012m2 section near the middle of town in 2019, paying $240,000.
Schwalger guesses it’s worth a lot more than that now, and a homes.co.nz estimate puts it at $340,000.
That is in line with the average West Coast house price of $324,655, according to economics consultancy Infometrics. This compares with the national average of $1,035,216.
Development West Coast chief executive Heath Milne points out that nationally, households spend 49.4% of their income on mortgage repayments, while on the West Coast the rate is 19.9%.
He says more people are eyeing the regions, seeking ‘‘cheaper housing, familyfriendly lifestyles and that feel of New Zealand as it used to be’’.
‘‘Advances in technology now allow people to live and work wherever they want, and many are choosing to base themselves amongst the truly stunning landscapes of the West Coast.’’
While the house price was one bonus, Schwalger says the community feel, scenery, and lack of city traffic are also pluses. And his business, Nomad Video and Audio, has taken off, despite him being based so remotely.
The scenery still blows him away as he travels for work.
‘‘All the jobs I drive to, up toward Granity and Karamea, or down to Punakaiki, Hokitika, Greymouth: Sometimes I pinch myself, thinking is this actually real, with just the beauty of driving from A to B.’’
Holms-Schwalger works part-time for Westland District Council, and has established a massage business. Milne says West Coast businesses are ‘‘crying out for staff, so there are lots of opportunities for those looking to shift west’’.
He cites Statistics NZ figures that show 264 new jobs were filled on the West Coast in the year to May, while Jobseeker recipient numbers fell by 81.
‘‘Both of us are like: ‘We don’t want to go anywhere.’ When we go to the city now, we want to go home.’’
Daimon Schwalger
‘‘At a time when the Coast is seeing a big jump in demand for workers, we’re experiencing severe skills and labour shortages . . . Moving to the West Coast is a great way to supercharge your career, get on the property ladder, while also improving your work-life balance,’’ Milne says.
Schwalger does see Westport’s downsides: walking around town in winter, he doesn’t like the smell of coal being burnt, and he says it is just luck the couple didn’t buy ‘‘a block and a half away’’ in the parts of town that have been repeatedly hit by flooding, most recently in February.
While Schwalger settled quickly – being hooked into the community through his promotions work – he says it was ‘‘touch and go’’ for his partner for some time.
Moving from Wellington, population 419,000, to Westport, population about 4600 and known for its high rainfall, was ‘‘a gamble’’ for their relationship, he says, made trickier by the fact Holms-Schwalger had been working in high-end hospitality which is lacking in the small town.
‘‘We’d just got engaged [when we moved]. It rained for a month. She packed her bags and almost left two or three times.’’
But, he says there’s no doubt both are happy now.
‘‘Both of us are like: ‘We don’t want to go anywhere.’ When we go to the city now, we want to go home. It’s just that vibe here, peaceful.
‘‘Once you get sucked in, mate, there’s no going back.’’