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Apr 11, 2023
Helping our local Hospice
Another milestone for Hospice Mid North, today receiving a donation of two defibrillators from their major sponsor REAL Property Kerikeri Ltd. The packs will be installed at both the Hospice Shop on Hobson Ave and at the collection point and shop on Kerikeri Rd. The REAL Team has, since 2021, donated over $200,000 to the Hospice Mid North team. The REAL House Tour last September raised around $30,000 plus $1,000 from every sale has been added to the cause. Steve De Ruiter, co-owner of the company, said the REAL Team is committed to supporting Hospice ongoing and is planning a mid-Winter get together to thank the hard working nurses, management and volunteers for their efforts.
Sep 28, 2022
Kerikeri is still an attractive destination for buyers.
Living in a smaller community has many benefits. Simple behaviours like a smile from a passer-by, saying G’day in the street and supporting one another in times of trouble. Over the past few months, several members of our team have been working to organize “The REAL House Tour”, a charity event to benefit Hospice Mid Northland. Part of this work involved soliciting others to offer their assistance, some as volunteers; some agreeing to open their homes for the tour; others providing items for auction and raffles; and many others providing goods and services for the event itself. Virtually everyone approached agreed without hesitation. The generosity of the businesses and people of Kerikeri was astounding. This is the type of place we live in. The place we are proud to call home. On the day over $30,000 was raised, funds that Hospice really need to continue their valuable free service to our communities in the Far North. (Government fund less than 43% of monies required.) At REAL, we are all very honoured to be aligned with Hospice. We hear so many stories from the community of their passionate commitment to caring and providing dignity to those who are in their final days of life and support for their families. Our team has contributed over $150,000 from their incomes since we started our support at the beginning of 2021. We encourage other people and businesses to help wherever they can. A life without Hospice’s services would be unimaginable and their caring is something many of us will most likely need at some point in the future. Now what else has been happening in our local property market and is it still behaving differently than other major centres as reported last month? The short answer is “yes, it is”. So here are the facts. Median house prices are still holding up despite further drops in other parts of Northland and most parts of the rest of the country. The question is will this continue or is this a lag on trends in other markets around the country. The truth is we still don’t really know. The number of homes for sale, or inventory, has increased only slightly in the past few months. This suggests properties are turning over at a rate not dissimilar to the rate they are coming onto the market. However, we typically get a Spring rush of new listings over the next few months which could create more competition between vendors. We have been encouraging our clients to “beat the rush” if they have plans to move. The median house sales price (on a quarterly moving average basis**) increased 12% from August 2021 compared with a drop of 4.2% for the same period in the Auckland region and a drop of 0.6% for all New Zealand. Kerikeri prices are just above their peak level versus a 12.4% drop in the Auckland region and a drop of 9.3% for all New Zealand. Kerikeri median prices are the closest to Auckland median prices in many years and are up 46% from 3 years prior. Other markets around the country that appear to be holding their prices are also smaller attractive towns like Arrowtown, Cambridge and Raglan. It is possible that our smaller number of sales is skewing these results due to a recent trend towards sales in higher price brackets so we will be watching this more closely over following months. The median days to sell is now up to 58 days which is around our average level for the last 10 years. Bare land: The volume of bare land sales is still much lower than prior years. There is some light on the horizon with news that the rate of rising construction costs may be slowing and that materials and consents are getting easier to come by. We have a historically low supply of sections, so we have not seen a great deal of discounting from developers to this point. There were 4 more sales recorded in August 2022 than in August 2021. 5 sales were between $1.5million and $2 million helping to ease the pressure on rising inventory in this bracket. This brought the volume of total property sold this year through August 31st to 29% down from the same period in 2021. This is better than the 33% lower comparison of year-on-year sales levels last month. We will need a few more months of data to see if this is a turning point or not. Buyers: This month saw both local buyers and buyers from other markets who have sold or have serious interest in their homes. Enquiry has been reasonably consistent, but buyers tend to be waiting until their homes are selling before making their moves. Interestingly, we have worked with a few people from around Puhoi and Warkworth and wonder if the pending completion of the motorway extension is pushing some of the current residents to look to live further out. Our typical feeder markets, Wellington, and Auckland, continue to show even lower median prices and lower sales volume. First time home buyers appear to be ramping up their purchases in other centres. How these various forces impact our market over the next year is unknown, but experience tells us there are always reasons people need to move and therefore buy and sell homes in any market. Our office recorded another 10 sales in July and had 37% of the total residential sales recorded in Greater Kerikeri for August. Through collaboration, sharing workloads and helping each other, we increased our share of the residential sales recorded in Kerikeri this year to 36%. This continues our unbeaten record of producing the highest number of residential sales in Kerikeri, year in and year out, for nearly 20 years. If you want to find out more about how our unique, high-performance system can help you achieve your property goals please give us a call or pop into our office anytime. We would be glad to show you around and make you a coffee while you are here. *Greater Kerikeri approximated the Kerikeri High School enrolment zone and includes Waipapa, Doves Bay Peninsula, Inlet Road Peninsula, Kapiro, Waimate North Road and branch roads, Wiroa Rd and branch roads, Pungaere Rd and branch roads, Puketotara Rd and branch roads, Waipapa West Road and branch roads, Takau Bay. **We use quarterly moving averages as these mitigate some of the wild monthly variation that occurs when reporting monthly medians on smaller number of sales.
Aug 8, 2022
A Visit to the Advance Build Premises
Our team had the pleasure of visiting Advance Build in Waipapa recently. Perry, Joseph and Tyler showed us around their new office space and factory, and Vista 3 Display home. We were impressed with their professionalism, teamwork and efficiency of their systems which is ultimately reflected in the finished quality of their product. The scale of the operation is immense and it was awesome to see the benefits of building homes undercover in a weatherproof environment and having the finished home delivered and installed on-site. You can check out their products and services on offer on their website, or give them a call on 0800327828. We thoroughly recommend a visit to their Display home if you are considering building or simply curious about Advance Build as a possible option for the future.
Aug 3, 2022
The Real House Tour
Ever wondered what was behind the doors of some of the most stunning properties in the Mid-North? Maybe you’re looking for inspiration on how to bring to life your own design ideas? Some wonderful homeowners have generously opened their doors to support Hospice Mid-Northland, and let you in to see behind their facades... Presented by Hospice’s long-term partners REAL Property Kerikeri, the REAL House Tour will showcase a selection of awesome and unique properties… prepare to be delighted and inspired! Your $75 donation covers: - A self-tour viewing inside a selection of unique propertiesaround Kerikeri from 10am-3:30pm - Cooking demonstrations and tasty treats from Hospice New Zealand's ambassador, Jo Seagar MNZM - Goodie bag from local suppliers - Glass of wine and nibbles at the special after-tour function from 4pm-6pm at a local winery - Entertainment, raffles and fundraising auction at after function STRICTLY LIMITED NUMBERS - GRAB YOUR FRIENDS AND GET YOUR TICKETS TODAY! [gallery link="none" size="medium" ids="9927,9928,9929" orderby="rand"] Please note: due to limited accessibility unfortunately the Tour is not suitable for people in wheelchairs or with walking frames. If you have mobility issues but would like to join us for the after-party, please contact Tiffiney at fundraising@hospicemn.org.nz. The Tour is not suitable for children under the age of 13 years. [siteloft_button text="BUY TICKETS NOW" link="https://hospicemn.infoodle.com/f/REALHouseTourticketForm" target="_blank" ]
Sep 27, 2021
Kerikeri prices continue rise, inventory levels at record lows - Market Update
What’s happening with house prices? The quarterly median price for a house in Kerikeri for sales completed during the 3 month period of June, July, August was $925,000. That is up a massive 37% from the same period 1 year ago and up 3.9% from last month. If you had purchased a home 20 years ago at the median price of $200,000 It could now be worth over 4.5 times that. It’s no wonder so many Kiwis invest in real estate as their primary investment choice. What are the market drivers? As we have covered in previous reports, the effects of low interest rates, returning expats and strong migration of New Zealanders from the cities to the Far North has caused a dramatic upsurge in enquiries and sales. This has led to diminished inventory of properties for sale across the district. The latest Covid-19 lockdowns have reinforced how people around the country can successfully work from home. We are hearing from city dwellers that they are fed up with taking the brunt of lockdowns and are now actively looking to move so they can work where they want to live. Who wouldn’t want to be near the beach or 5 minutes from the boat-ramp, versus tackling the congestion of the city and potential further extended lockdowns. Despite the level four lockdown in Auckland we have received offers “sight unseen” on properties often from buyers desperate to find a new home in the area. Fortunately, technology allows our industry to continue operating efficiently as agents, vendors, buyers, lenders and solicitors all interact on-line. This has kept the majority of existing sales moving forward even in the highest levels of lockdown. The only slowdown has been the physical inspections by building inspectors and valuers at level 4. How are the number of sales tracking? Kerikeri and surrounds had 102 unconditional residential and lifestyle house and bare land sales in June, July and August compared with 132 sales in the same period last year. A 23% percent decrease driven by low inventory levels and existing agreements being extended out past the end of August due to Covid-19 lockdowns. Bare land sales are significantly down from 33 over the June, July, August period last year to only 16 this year. There are very few sections now left available for sale in Kerikeri and those development that have come on-line in the last year have sold out off the plan well before titles are issued and often before the works have even begun. What about bare land sales prices? The median price for a section under 1ha in Kerikeri was $475,000 for June, July, August compared with $270,000 last year a huge increase of 76%. How long is it taking to sell? Days to sell have dropped from 79 for sales in August 2020 to 27 in August 2021. How are inventory levels tracking? Inventory levels are down to 125 listings for sale on Trade Me from over 200 a year ago and an average of over 400 over the last 10 years. The recent lockdowns have exaggerated this as some vendors have hit the pause button on coming to market. How many new listings are coming to the market? New listing levels are starting to pick up as vendors who put their plans on hold come to the market and the usual Spring rush of activity begins. However, with many buyers who have already sold and are ready to buy, enquiry is very high immediately after the advertising starts and they are often flying off the shelf quickly. So, despite an increase in new listings coming to the market, inventory levels are remaining very low. What is the outlook for the Kerikeri market? Indications from market economists are that interest rate increases and LVR restrictions will be implemented by the reserve bank in coming months to try to kerb this continued upward price pressure. Despite interest rates set to rise, they will still be historically low for a while yet and the rule changes will likely affect first home buyers more significantly. First home buyers have not traditionally been a high percentage of the market in Kerikeri due to our above average prices. The migration to the Far North appears to be continuing strongly. Assuming these trends continue then we can expect our local market to stay strong for the foreseeable future. Consequently, we are anticipating a busy Spring in the Far North as lockdowns lift around the country. There may never have been a better time to sell. Pop in for a coffee and a catch up with any one of us if you are thinking of buying or selling. Hospice update This year we have joined forces with Hospice and are donating $1000 from each sale to help Hospice assist others in our community. Our relationship with Hospice has blossomed and we are like two families coming together. We are delighted to announce we have raised over $64,000 this year so far. The fantastic nurses and Administration team at Hospice now have two new vehicles to help with their incredibly valuable work. Every one of our team members dig into their own pockets to help with this valuable cause. We have also pledged to continue our relationship with Hospice next year and beyond. Click here to discover more... Other news in the community You done have to look far to see there is plenty of development going on around the town. It is great to see so much activity that is so needed to bring the infrastructure to Kerikeri required to support our incredible growth. Domain works and skatepark Works have begun on the revitalization works to the Domain in central Kerikeri. This an exciting time for the community and particularly for the many youth who will be able to enjoy the upgraded basketball and skateboarding facilities when completed in early 2022. Taking advantage of the Provincial Fund grants, it will create a destination for families in the community to come together and enjoy the outdoors right in the centre of our town. Windsor Landing What an amazing facility has been built at the end of Inlet Road. Plenty of parking, all tide access. Boat, kayak or stand up paddle direct from public space on the shoreline. It has been a long time coming and locals are already taking advantage of this huge improvement to our access to our fabulous marine playground – The Bay of Islands. Click here to locate Windsor Landing. Waipapa Sports Fields The first stage of the new Sports Park in Waipapa are underway with the formation of the entrance and construction of other service connections to accommodate the ablution block and changing rooms. Watch this space as the first 5 new fields, parking areas and walking areas come together in the first stage. The longer term vision has the potential to accommodate a hockey field, baseball diamonds, cricket nets, clubrooms, a dog training area, cycle paths, croquet lawns, children’s play zone and a gymnastics facility in the later stages. Developments selling fast – Arvida, Quail Ridge and Inlet Estate Interest has been strong in the new Arvida retirement development and 16 houses have been completed very quickly with many more under construction. Quail Ridge at the end of Rainbow Falls Rd continues to expand changing the views from the golf course and town. Inlet Estate has only a handful of packages left. Large integrated development proposals for the Bing land off Kerikeri Road behind King St and for the Brownlie farm behind the golf course have been presented to the Council. These two developments alone have the potential to house 3 to 5 thousand people. It is becoming clear that right now is a major turning point for Kerikeri. The population of Kerikeri and its immediate surrounds have grown to nearly 20,000 now and we continue to see rapid growth far greater than most other areas of the country. Recently our town missed out on any central government funding from Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency to solve our traffic problems. With over 11,000 traffic movements daily on Kerikeri Road currently, nobody has an answer to how our community is going to cope with the future challenges of moving around our town in light of the current population explosion we are witnessing. One thing is for sure, traffic is going to get a lot worse before a solution is in place. Make sure you have your say on how our town progresses. Submit your views on Council plans including the upcoming Draft District Plan which will have affect on the next 10 to 20 years of Kerikeri’s development. Get a louder voice by participating or volunteering with community groups such as Our Kerikeri or Vision Kerikeri. Talk to your elected councillors and members of the Community Board about things that concern you. Positive change will not happen without our community having a voice.
Mar 22, 2021
Project H
The whole team at REAL is thrilled to make Hospice our official charity. As a locally owned business we feel it is important to continue our support of our community. As part of our Project H initiative we have pledged to give $1,000 from every house sale during 2021 to Hospice Mid-North and our goal is to raise over $130,000. Hospice provides specialist palliative care for those living with a life-limiting illness. It is a sad fact that almost everyone knows someone who has benefited from the support of Hospice. Most of us associate Hospice with caring for people with end-stage cancer, however a surprising 47% of their clients suffer from other conditions such as heart or lung disease. They also provide a host of other services including education, counselling and bereavement support. They service a population of 45,000 and that’s reflected in demand for their services. For the period of January 1 – December 31 2020, Hospice Mid-North cared for 228 clients and their families, up from 190 patients the year previously. That’s community-based care that took place in family homes. Hospice Mid-North also provided those families with the free use of medical equipment, such as hospital beds, medication pumps and breathing apparatus etc. It’s equipment that’s needed to keep their clients as comfortable as possible but, like so many of the services they provide, is not government funded. This year alone, Hospice faces a shortfall of around $900,000. Typically, this is raised through a combination of channels including their retail stores, donations and a variety of fundraising events, many of which simply couldn’t proceed last year due to Covid-19. How are we making a REAL difference? At the time of writing this article we have already raised $20,000 and hope that by the end of March we will have raised enough for the purchase of a Mitsubishi ASX for them at a generously discounted price thanks to Pacific Motor Group in Waipapa. Next, we are aiming to purchase a second car for the exclusive use of the Nursing team which needs another vehicle for home visits. After that comes a heat pump system to keep volunteers and customers in the Cobham Road shop safe and comfortable as closure has occasionally been necessary after exceeding the maximum allowable temperature of 30 degrees. We are working with Hospice to identify a number of other tangible assets that will allow us to support this amazing organisation. On our team visit to Hospice we got to experience the Hospice culture. We met some of the volunteers, managers, nurses and board members. It quickly became apparent that the caring nature carries on right throughout the organisation. Morning tea was provided, and we were greeted with a waiata. It was a very humbling experience, and we are extremely grateful for what Hospice does for our community. Does Project H sound familiar? We have organised major fundraising for Hospice before. In 2008 we decided to build a house in 5 days, auction it off and donate all the proceeds to Hospice. This idea was not only challenging to complete but would have been impossible without the support of our community. We had donations coming in thick and fast from suppliers of materials, trades peoples’ time and services and students supplying morning tea, lunches, and dinners for all the volunteers. The result was that we raised $215,000 for hospice and, if you’re interested in watching a short video from the five-day build, then go to the following link Project H - 2008 Video You too can help us make a REAL difference to Hospice. We’d love to exceed our $130,000+ goal and you can help by listing with our team or by referring anyone that’s thinking of selling their property. Thank you in advance for your support. REAL welcomes the opportunity of offering free appraisals and market advice to prospective home sellers without obligation. Pop in for a coffee and a catch up with any one of us if you are thinking of buying or selling.