AUCKLAND PROPERTY BOOM SPREADS THROUGHOUT THE COUNTRY Homeowners hoping for top prices all over
FOR CHILDCARE centre owner Jo McDougall, it is time to downsize.
With a 20- year- old daughter studying engineering in Christchurch and an 18- year- old son ‘‘making noises’’ about moving out, she faces the prospect of having just one child at home.
That means their four-bedroom house in Seatoun Heights is bigger than they need.
‘‘It’s just the fact that it’s too big for us,’’ she says.
The family bought the house in 1999 after moving back to New Zealand from the UK.
Back then it cost them around $480,000.
It has since increased in value to a rated $800,000, partly as a result of their extensive renovations.
McDougall says she is hopeful of getting a good price for the house.
‘‘We’ve had one open home and quite a few people came … things are looking positive.’’
However, she won’t be surprised if it sells for below its rated value, because she doesn’t think the rated value really reflects the market.
‘‘If mine goes under GV I won’t be disappointed, because I don’t think my GV is right.’’
She thinks the Wellington market is less competitive than Auckland’s.
‘‘ That whole supply and demand thing is much more even here,’’ she says.
‘‘ When you’re talking about selling a house in Wellington, you can’t be thinking about Auckland. But we all see it on the news, and we all hear what’s happening there.
‘‘I think a lot of people anticipate they can get more than their GV here, but I don’t agree with that.’’
In Marlborough, retiree Sue Cambridge, 68, listed her Springlands home on the market three weeks ago.
She moved into the house nine years ago when she shifted from her Waihopai Valley farm into Blenheim.
Cambridge said she decided to sell the house because she is living on her own and the property is too big for her.
The property, which has four bedrooms and two bathrooms, will be sold by auction on Wdnesday. Cambridge had made an offer on a smaller home in the Springlands area.
Bayleys Marlborough real estate agent Kris Gibson said 27 poten- tial buyers came along to an open home last Sunday.
‘‘That is huge for Blenheim – that’s the biggest open home we’ve had for some time.’’
Property hunters from Auckland were among those who showed up for the open home.
‘‘ There’s quite a few people from out of the area looking.’’
Gibson had noticed an increase in the number of people from Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch competing with Blenheim buyers to get houses in the area.
Some people were continuing to work in Auckland and were flying back to Marlborough on the weekends, Gibson said. There had been several very good recent sale prices in the region.
‘‘ We foresee an increase in prices in Marlborough based on the shortage of properties on the market.’’