Perry Groves

Hi, Can anyone tell me if there are any reasonably safe areas in Auckland for someone looking to buy a house with a budget of around $500,000 for 3-4 bedrooms?

A Rush And A Push

Do you know whereabouts you would be commuting to for work? Can narrow down areas then

Affordable areas in Auckland are few and far between I'm afraid.

Perry Groves

Most likely the CBD

Parnell

Check out trains from britomart

bearskin

You may have to go a fair way out of Auckland to get those requirements.. An hours commute I would guess. Not a great time to be looking.

A Rush And A Push

Yeah, I'm struggling to think of a decent area where you will get a stand alone house for that. A unit (single-storey terrace) or townhouse (two or three storey terrace) maybe but not a place with a garden.

Bo-Jangles

With $500k you really are looking at the bottom end of the Auckland market. You'll either have to travel far or take on a project.

Depending on how far you are willing to travel and how much traffic you're willing to put up with you might find some places up the Hibiscus Coast / Whangapaoroa Peninsula. There's new and so called 'affordable' homes being built at Hobsonville (starting at around $700k)

Other than that you'll likely find something down South in the 3Ps Papakura, Pakuranga, Papatoetoe or out west Te Atatu and Henderson but you'd have to check them out yourself to see if those places would make the grade.

Perry Groves

Thanks everyone. I was also think the 3 P's or maybe further south. But I guess not Otara

Chocoholics

I agree with BO-Jangles. You will struggle to get anything with a reasonable commute to the CBD. Public transport is gradually getting better here but it is a long way from the transport networks in the UK so it is likely driving could be your only option. Something to keep in mind when you are looking. Having said that, looks like you have already done quite a bit of research which is good and figured some of this out.

scrubbedexpat094

Hibiscus coast is great for young families. Ferry journey from Gulf Harbour to CBD is 50 mins. Have had a quick check on a couple of real estate websites and there isn't a lot around for $500k, which surprised me as I didn't think house prices had gone up that much around us.

davros1984

You'll definitely struggle to get 3 bedrooms in Auckland for 500K.(I'd know!). Suggest you lower your requirements or look into buying an apartment for that money.

Funnily enough we've just had an offer accepted on a 4-bed detached house in the UK (in a great area and location) for a far lesser amount than 500K NZD. Auckland = crazy money!

Stormer999

I fail to see the relevance...

davros1984

The posters question is the same challenge we faced in Auckland. We got out. The poster will be hard-pushed to find what they're after for around 500K NZD in Auckland that's commutable to the CBD. Its an expensive place to be.

garethwm

Likewise, I can buy similar in Invercargil for less than $200k NZ. Youve got to compare oranges with oranges relative to the country. I think Auckland is to NZ what London is to the UK, although on a different scale, obviously.

davros1984

Useful advice to the original poster. Are you definitely set on Auckland or are other areas an option? Your money will go a lot further outside of Auckland.

I don't necessarily agree Auckland is like London, Auckland is more like a Cardiff or Edinburgh, but take away at least 50% of the restaurants, pubs and other facilities that Cardiff and Edinburgh have, then give it London property prices. Although Auckland does have some stunning beaches and the Waitakere ranges