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There may be unease in some quarters about new housing intensification rules that will take effect next month, but Mahurangi real estate agents are largely upbeat about what this will mean for Warkworth.
Ray White Warkworth manager Terrence Banks says proposed changes to the medium-density rules are already seeing property values increase, with a couple of developers recently buying residential properties in the Warkworth area.
And rather than Mum and Dad investors, these buyers are looking for multiple properties next to each other, Banks says.
While there may be concerns by some homeowners over losing sun and having multistorey town houses built close to their boundary, their property values are unlikely to be negatively affected, he says. The potential for development on their own land will still see their property’s value also increase.
Banks believes this will also see more buyers interested in this area generally.
“They won’t necessarily want to develop themselves, rather they will see it as a good investment with that potential for the future,” he says.
While the large developments either planned or underway will supply more housing, these will take time to deliver.
“They won’t happen fast enough to meet the current housing shortage,” he says.
Barfoot and Thompson Warkworth manager Mehran Zareian sees the intensification as a good opportunity to provide affordable housing for young people who currently can’t afford to buy and are struggling to stay in the area.“We need the younger generation to be the future workforce, so we need them to live locally,” he says.
While high-end town housing is likely, he also sees larger residential apartment blocks going up with one and two bedroom apartments.
He’d like to see developers being mindful of parking issues as locals don’t tend to use public transport. Body corporates providing parking or supplying pool cars could be a good idea.
Harveys Warkworth Real Estate owner Greg Allen-Baines agrees property values will go up. It may make people uncomfortable, but this will make their land more valuable, he says. The ability to build is one of the first things vendors ask about.
Allen-Baines can only see good things attached to the intensification because of the benefits it will bring the area economically. While he wouldn’t like to see Warkworth become like Howick or Pakuranga, there is no doubt more money will come into the area, he says.
While Banks also sees the economic returns for the area, he acknowledges there will be a lot of pressure on the town’s schools, roading and infrastructure, with wastewater treatment likely to be a limiting factor for new builds for a couple of years. The wastewater treatment facilities in Warkworth are at capacity and the new Snells Beach plant is still a couple of years away from being operational.
Warkworth has always been a commuter town and Banks expects this to markedly increase when Ara Tūhono Puhoi to Warkworth motorway opens next year.
L J Hooker Warkworth owner Viv Wyatt says some residential property may perhaps sell for a tidy profit, but he feels for the people who are happy with the town as it is, but who will have neighbouring developments forced on them. The character of the town will change, he says.
Wyatt feels the Mahurangi River has been overlooked as an asset to the town and he hopes good quality development along it will help it reach its full potential. He says the changes will be good for businesses, with intensification making it less likely the town will be by-passed once the motorway extension heads further north towards Whangarei.
