Last week we took advantage of the great weather and had a selection of incredible photographs taken of Pt Chevalier from an aircraft and I have posted some of these below.
As the first prize sponsor of “A weekend in the Chev” photo competition we can’t enter these shots but thought you would appreciate us posting them here for your enjoyment.
For details of this weekend’s photo competition have a look at pointchev.com where you will also find a great deal of information about the local community.
March 09 2010 | Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
The many boat ramps and jetties surrounding the Pt Chevalier coastline were almost swamped by this morning’s king high tide as you will see in the following photos. Any higher and the kayak would have floated off the jetty!
The Oliver St boat ramp would have been very easy to launch at this morning around 9.25am and there would have been a good opportunity to get out on the water for about one hour either side of that time.
With no exposed sand or mudflats left to wade on the Grey Herons took to the Pohutukawas waiting for the tide to drop – at least he had a great view!
The king tides started on February 28 and peak on March 2nd or 3rd. High tide on those days will be 3.6 metres at around 10 in the morning and again at night. That is only about 10 to 20 centimetres higher than average, but weather experts say if they coincide with rough weather there could be some flooding.
Auckland climate scientist Jim Salinger says if the tides coincide with low pressure weather systems we could experience flooding, but the latest long range forecast suggests there will be no issues.
However the New Zealand Transport Agency has warned bike riders to be aware of the situation if they plan to use the low-lying cycleway alongside the north-western motorway 90 minutes either side of high tide in the affected week
March 02 2010 | Uncategorized | No Comments »
When there are a large number of homes on the market it can be quite a challenge finding the time to inspect those that might suit you.
This map created at googlemaps.com shows how many homes were available in the central part of Auckland early in March and the sheer volume of listings means the task of deciding which ones to inspect is a major mission
So my question is how do you decide which homes to look at, after all most open homes are only held between 12 noon and 3.30pm and there is only so much ground you can cover in that timeframe?
Do you firstly select homes with an asking price, auctions or properties without a price?
Or would you prefer to make a shortlist and make an appointment with a salesperson to inspect a selection of homes at a slower pace rather than rushing through open homes?
Do you first look at the homes online and then add or delete them from your list?
What else influences your house hunting decisions?
How many people use googlemaps.com to drill down into suburbs and see what’s available? An example of this can be viewed online here.
Buyers seem reluctant to make actual appointments to look at homes or maybe they do not consider that they are available for viewing every day. By appointment inspections allow much more time to take a thorough look and make a more considered decision. Surely it is easier to firstly select homes that have some sort of price indication, then preview the photos online and make an appointment to view. Would it not be prudent to spend at least half an hour in a home in order to decide if it’s for you, rather than a 5 minute rush through an open home?
The strange thing at the moment is that only very low numbers are visiting the open homes so I wonder is this because the buyers are spreading themselves across so many homes in various suburbs and can only get through a certain number in one afternoon or have buyers simply gone to ground still waiting for prices to drop?
We have tried a couple of 11.15am-11.45am open homes and these have had more people through than the ones held after 12 noon. Would be interested to get some feedback from prospective buyers and salespeople on the questions posed here.
March 02 2010 | Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Everyone says that it is difficult to find a home in the Auckland region at the NZ median price and in our office we seldom have available properties under $400,000 however Kris Brown of our office has listed four homes that all meet that criteria.
You can take your pick from the commute to Karaka or head to Avondale – just two motorway off ramps from the city or slightly further to Glendene or Kelston.
This home at Karaka is only $389,000 and is situated on an 888m2 site in the countryside not too far from Pukekohe:
Or consider this brick and tile in a quiet spot at the end of Avondale Rd for $399,000. Would make a great investment or first home:
So if you are looking for a home under $400,000 take a look at sellrealty.co.nz and contact Kris to make a time to view these homes and the others he has available.
If you prefer to be really close to the City then we also have 8 Premier Ave, Pt Chevalier which is asking $449,000:
March 02 2010 | Uncategorized | No Comments »
Detailed information will be available on key issues such as air quality, noise control, open space and urban design at the NZTA expos on the new SH20 Waterview motorway and changes to SH16 from St Lukes to Te Atatu.
Expos will be held:
• Saturday, 6 March, 10am to 5pm,
Pasadena Intermediate School, Moray Place, Pt Chevalier
• Saturday, 13 March, 10am to 5pm,
Owairaka Primary School, Richardson Road.
Visit this website for more information.
March 01 2010 | Uncategorized | No Comments »
Public open days for the future development of Pt Chevalier and Western Springs into one of Auckland’s liveliest centres will take place next month.
Council planners will be on hand to explain the plans, known as precinct plans, which have been prepared with the community and form part of th council’s future planning framework.
“Pt Chevalier and Western Springs are special places renowned for their heritage, character and green spaces. They are also home to favourite attractions such as Auckland Zoo, Motat, the park and the stadium,” says Councillor Graeme Mulholland, deputy chairperson of the City Development Committee and chairperson of the council’s working party overseeing the future planning framework.
“It’s important that any development respects these attributes, and local people have a hand in influencing what is best for their area. I urge everyone to go along to the open days and give their feedback.”
The Pt Chevalier and Western Springs open days are on at the Pt Chevalier Community Centre from noon to 7pm on the 12th March and 10am to 3pm on the 13th of March.
More information available at itsmybackyard.co.nz
March 01 2010 | Uncategorized | No Comments »
We are sponsoring a photo competition in Pt Chevalier being run by Cameron Greig of pointchev.com and have put up a grand prize of $500. Photos are to be taken from noon Friday March 12th to noon Monday March 15th.
One weekend. Hundreds of images. We are hoping that the community will get right behind this initiative and between us we can capture the suburb in all it’s glory. Entries will be displayed at the Pt Chevalier Public Library. Full details of the competition can be viewed here.
If you haven’t already taken a look you must see the fabulous community resource that Cameron Greig has put together at pointchev.com
February 14 2010 | Uncategorized | No Comments »
Will the Apple iPad become the ultimate tech tool for the mobile real estate salesperson?
After much anticipation Apple have just released the iPad – in many respects a large iPhone but with greater capability.
It’s 7mm thick, very light with a 9.7-inch capacitive touchscreen IPS LCD display, and runs a custom 1GHz Apple “A4″ chip with a 10-hour battery life and a month of standby. It’ll come in 16, 32, and 64GB sizes, and it’s got the expected connectivity: very little. There’s a 30-pin Dock connector, a speaker, a microphone, Bluetooth, and 802.11n WiFi, as well as an accelerometer and a compass. The device is managed by iTunes, just like the iPhone — you sync everything over to your Mac. There’s also a 3G version that comes with new data plans. Every iPad is unlocked and comes with a GSM micro-SIM, so you can use it abroad, but there aren’t any international deals in place right now – Apple boss Steve Jobs says they’ll have news on that front soon. As expected, it can run iPhone apps – either pixel-for-pixel in a window, or pixel-doubled fullscreen.
View videos, how to use guide etc all online here and loads of pictures and information here
Over 75 million iPhones have been sold and all users of the iPhone will know how to use the iPad so I think it can be expected that the iPad will be a massive hit with the consumer, especially if offered at a low price point.
January 28 2010 | Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
We have just completed a review of the 2009 real estate market for the Westmere area for all sales excluding sections north of Wellpark Ave and Richmond Rd and a colour copy of this including charts is available by clicking here.
Here are some of the highlights of 2009:
Volume of sales up 67%
During 2009 there were 94 sales compared with 56 sales in 2008 – that’s an increase of 67% but still down on the average number of sales that have usually taken place most years prior to 2008.
Value of sales
$80,096,500 worth of sales took place in Westmere during 2009.
Median price per quarter
$706,500 in the first quarter
$740,000 in the second quarter
$777,000 in the third quarter
$835,000 in the fourth quarter
The previous median record for a full year was 2007 at $795,000 so the final quarter median at $835,000 is an interesting development. Will it continue to strengthen through the first quarter of 2010 and beyond?
Median price per year
Here are the median prices for each of the last 5 years
2005 $705,000
2006 $728,500
2007 $795,000
2008 $725,000
2009 $769,000
Sales by price range
2 sales under $400,000
5 sales from $400,000 to $499,000
9 sales from $500,000 to $599,000
16 sales from $600,000 to $699,000
23 sales from $700,000 to $799,000
14 sales from $800,000 to $899,000
8 sales from $900,000 to $999,000
6 sales from $1,000,000 to $1,249,000
5 sales from $1,250,000 to $1,500,000
6 sales over $1,500,000
The highest price achieved was $2,250,000
Market Share
Our office obtained superb results for the Westmere properties that we sold in 2009 and one example sold for more than $100,000 above the price that was achieved for it early in 2008 when it last sold.
2010 Prediction
If supply stays low and we continue to register fresh buyers every week then prices must continue to rise – perhaps by as much as 15% in 2010. We need more Westmere homes now!
In the latter part of 2009 our office had one of the most bouyant final quarters we have ever seen and we have almost run out of homes. We need at least 25 new listings right now – the buyers are waiting, we just need your homes!
Data used in this report collected from various sources including tracking by us of all homes advertised in the area, sold sign count etc. Data is for all sales in Westmere north of Wellpark Ave and Richmond Rd.
January 21 2010 | Uncategorized | No Comments »
As I drove down Oliver St this afternoon I noticed machines working in the area of the boat ramp so I had a chat with the site foreman and he explained they were extending the ramp by adding an additional concrete area and improving the angle of the slope.
These changes will make it easier to launch slightly bigger boats and maybe allow longer on the water before the tide goes out and you can’t get back to the ramp. Last week we caught nine snapper just off Watchman’s Island only 8 to 10 minutes from the ramp in 2 metres of water and late on Saturday afternoon another four snapper in the 24 metre deep hole off Kauri Point.
So the ramp upgrade will be appreciated by the many locals who use it, especially those who like to catch dinner close to home!
The mangroves that get in the way of launching, between the yacht and the digger, have been removed since this photo was taken. The work should be completed this week ready for use this weekend.
January 19 2010 | Uncategorized | No Comments »
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