New Zealand is about to claim its first million dollar suburb and while it seemed improbable just five years ago, experts say several areas are racing to the $1 million median house price mark, with the first likely to get there within the next 12 months.
With the national median house price of just NZD $347,000 and in the largest city Auckland, less than NZD $500 000, finding a suburb of streets full of properties topping the $1 million mark is a milestone few have contemplated.
A handful of areas across the country, such as the tiny but picturesque Northland tourist port of Russell, and Auckland's rugged Waitakere region - which includes elite Cornwallis, Karekare and Piha - have already posted million-dollar medians at least once in the past 12 months but they are not considered reflective of overall performance. This is because they are based on just a handful of sales of high-end properties, which distorts the results.
However, Auckland's more traditional blue-chip property zones in the eastern suburbs, plus Mt Eden/Epsom and the historic area of Devonport, are pushing to provide the country with its first official seven-digit suburb.
Devonport, which includes expensive Cheltenham and Stanley Bay, twice posted a median house sale price of NZD $800,000-$845,000 in the past 12 months, according to latest Real Estate Institute figures. And all three zones - which include prestigious neighbourhoods such as St Heliers, Remuera, Parnell and Herne Bay - recorded June medians ranging from $700,000 to almost $750,000.
Picture-postcard villas and views are one of the big attractions of Devonport, the historic face of Auckland's North Shore.
Affluent homeowners are attracted to the seaside suburb for many reasons - its fine eateries, the 15-minute ferry service to the CBD, safe streets, and homes of character and charm.
It's little wonder million-dollar price-tags are the norm for substantial homes, with significant prices being notched up for properties close to the water - and not necessarily on big sites.
The history of 9 Rata Road, a restored four-bedroom, three-bathroom restored villa at the Cheltenham end of Devonport, shows how prices have escalated in this suburb.
The home was built around 1910 and it was not until 1992 that Quotable Value recorded the property's first sale price as $337,500.
By the time of its next sale four years later, the price had more than doubled to $742,500. In 2003, when it next changed hands, it was a similar story, selling for $1.4 million.
Agents say the villa, now up for tender on July 26, is expected to attract offers of about $2 million this time around.
At a glance:
- Auckland's eastern suburbs, Mt Eden/Epsom, and parts of Devon- port are racing to become our first million-dollar-median suburbs.
- Parnell, St Mary's Bay and Herne Bay are other top contenders.
- Half of Auckland's zones now have house-price medians of $500,000 or more.