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  1. #1
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    Smile Queenstown - a buyers market ?

    Hi all,

    As a family we are considering moving to Queenstown for a lifestyle change for 3-4yrs until the kids hit secondary school age when we might consider moving back to Auckland.

    We are just wondering if there are any locals on Sharetrader who could give us a few basic facts about the property market. There is a lot of press in the market that the Southern Lakes region has probably suffered the most in the property downturn.

    Q1. Is the market down there on its knees ? ... We are tempted by Jack's Point but from what I hear it is still a ghost town with empty Fletcher Houses and little going on. For such a spectacular location is now the time to bag a bargain ? We are thinking of renting while we build a new house at Jack's Point after bagging a section for around $225-$250k. What is the local view of Jack's Point ... is it a over-priced, over-hyped "white elephant"?

    Q2. Lake Hayes Estate ... not our prefered option as it strikes us as a really cold hollow with little to offer in terms of amenities. Are locals dubious or positive on this sprawling sub-division?

    Q3. Athur's Point ... I like the area, near the Shotover River , half way to Arrowtown. What is the local view.

    Q4. I do alot of business in Christchurch. Is there any reason why Air NZ doesn't run early morning flights out of Queenstown to arrive in Christchuch at between say 8.00 and 8.30am ... the last flight back leaves CHC at 4.20pm , which again is pretty early. Is this due to the terrain and dangers of landing in the dark ... or is there just no demand. For board meetings that start at say 9.00am in CHC it seems the only option is to go the night before or drive to Invercargill where there are two departures to CHC before 8.00am !! Is driving to IVC airport a realistic option inside say 2hrs ?

    Our housing budget will be $700k ish .... any suggestions ...

    Thanks for your help.
    Last edited by The Great Gold Guru; 13-07-2009 at 01:11 PM.

  2. #2
    FEAR n GREED JBmurc's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Great Gold Guru View Post
    Hi all,

    As a family we are considering moving to Queenstown for a lifestyle change for 3-4yrs until the kids hit secondary school age when we might consider moving back to Auckland.

    We are just wondering if there are any locals on Sharetrader who could give us a few basic facts about the property market. There is a lot of press in the market that the Southern Lakes region has probably suffered the most in the property downturn.

    Q1. Is the market down there on its knees ? ... We are tempted by Jack's Point but from what I hear it is still a ghost town with empty Fletcher Houses and little going on. For such a spectacular location is now the time to bag a bargain ? We are thinking of renting while we build a new house at Jack's Point after bagging a section for around $225-$250k. What is the local view of Jack's Point ... is it a over-priced, over-hyped "white elephant"?

    Q2. Lake Hayes Estate ... not our prefered option as it strikes us as a really cold hollow with little to offer in terms of amenities. Are locals dubious or positive on this sprawling sub-division?

    Q3. Athur's Point ... I like the area, near the Shotover River , half way to Arrowtown. What is the local view.

    Q4. I do alot of business in Christchurch. Is there any reason why Air NZ doesn't run early morning flights out of Queenstown to arrive in Christchuch at between say 8.00 and 8.30am ... the last flight back leaves CHC at 4.20pm , which again is pretty early. Is this due to the terrain and dangers of landing in the dark ... or is there just no demand. For board meetings that start at say 9.00am in CHC it seems the only option is to go the night before or drive to Invercargill where there are two departures to CHC before 8.00am !! Is driving to IVC airport a realistic option inside say 2hrs ?

    Our housing budget will be $700k ish .... any suggestions ...

    Thanks for your help.
    -Lake hayes est. a really cold hollow LOL I really think you should buy in sunshine bay LOL
    "With a good perspective on history, we can have a better understanding of the past and present, and thus a clear vision of the future." — Carlos Slim Helu

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Great Gold Guru View Post
    Hi all,

    As a family we are considering moving to Queenstown for a lifestyle change for 3-4yrs until the kids hit secondary school age when we might consider moving back to Auckland.

    We are just wondering if there are any locals on Sharetrader who could give us a few basic facts about the property market. There is a lot of press in the market that the Southern Lakes region has probably suffered the most in the property downturn.

    Q1. Is the market down there on its knees ? ... We are tempted by Jack's Point but from what I hear it is still a ghost town with empty Fletcher Houses and little going on. For such a spectacular location is now the time to bag a bargain ? We are thinking of renting while we build a new house at Jack's Point after bagging a section for around $225-$250k. What is the local view of Jack's Point ... is it a over-priced, over-hyped "white elephant"?

    Q2. Lake Hayes Estate ... not our prefered option as it strikes us as a really cold hollow with little to offer in terms of amenities. Are locals dubious or positive on this sprawling sub-division?

    Q3. Athur's Point ... I like the area, near the Shotover River , half way to Arrowtown. What is the local view.

    Q4. I do alot of business in Christchurch. Is there any reason why Air NZ doesn't run early morning flights out of Queenstown to arrive in Christchuch at between say 8.00 and 8.30am ... the last flight back leaves CHC at 4.20pm , which again is pretty early. Is this due to the terrain and dangers of landing in the dark ... or is there just no demand. For board meetings that start at say 9.00am in CHC it seems the only option is to go the night before or drive to Invercargill where there are two departures to CHC before 8.00am !! Is driving to IVC airport a realistic option inside say 2hrs ?

    Our housing budget will be $700k ish .... any suggestions ...

    Thanks for your help.
    Yes. Rent.

  4. #4
    Senior Member blockhead's Avatar
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    GGG

    Think if you live at Jacks Point or Lake Hayes Estate you will pretty soon get tired of driving the kids to Queenstown primary school each day (if they dont go in the bus), would be tempted to look at house buying/renting in Queenstown or Arrowtown if I was you. There is a primary school in Arrowtown

  5. #5
    FEAR n GREED JBmurc's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by funguspudding View Post
    Yes. Rent.
    Yeah for a nice new home here that gets more than 1-2hrs of sun per day your be looking at least $450pw-$600pw av

    You can buy the same house for round 500k-700k depending on your capital input it would IMHO be better to buy as once you move here from the rat-race your prob want to stay longer than 4yrs many people come to queenstown for a winter to never want to leave

    Not having enough $$$ jobs etc is biggest driver away of locals(that an living in the shade for half of the year)

    Right now it's currently 26deg inside are house in Lake hayes est. only sun heating atm till 5pm
    "With a good perspective on history, we can have a better understanding of the past and present, and thus a clear vision of the future." — Carlos Slim Helu

  6. #6
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    Smile

    OK, so Lake Hayes is not as cold as some parts and gets plenty of sun. Thanks for that.

    Any other points ...

    Lack of early morning and late evening flights and travel time to IVC airport ??

    Any idea when the new primary school at Frankton will be opening ??

    Is Jack's Point fundamentally flawed or just suffering like rest of market ??

    Is Butel Park a realistic option ??


    More opinions would be greatly appreciated.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Great Gold Guru View Post
    OK, so Lake Hayes is not as cold as some parts and gets plenty of sun. Thanks for that.

    Any other points ...

    Lack of early morning and late evening flights and travel time to IVC airport ??

    Any idea when the new primary school at Frankton will be opening ??

    Is Jack's Point fundamentally flawed or just suffering like rest of market ??
    I have owned 2 properties in Queenstown over the years, and observed the ups and downs for decades. It is speculator driven and does not behave like most real estate markets which are usually underpinned by genuine owner occupiers. Same applies to Florida, Surfers paradise, Aspin, and many other holiday resorts. When QT goes dead - it really goes dead, not just quiet. It will happen again, but it's not there yet. Be prepared to rent for a while and study the market. You'll find a bargain, it's definitely a place where the odd desperado has to 'meet the market' on the day - but you'll never build a bargain.

  8. #8
    Senior Member blockhead's Avatar
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    The new school aint built yet GGG

    JB Murc knows where there sun is, I would suggest head down there and drive around the neighbourhoods seeing where the sun is through the day.

    JB's other comment about going there and never leaving is right on the nail, I know many who have gone for a wee while and stayed for a long while, also know a good few who have gone with the intention of staying for a long while but have not been able to afford to stay there.
    In our experience it does not cost too much more to live in Queenstown than any other part of NZ except for housing, but there are a hell of a lot of distractions to spend $$$ on, skis, mountainbikes, Millbrook Concerts, Restaurants, Casinos, mates visiting and wanting to take you to the pub, easy flights to Oz and so on.

  9. #9
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    Default Jacks Point

    Just spent 1/2hr on the phone to agent from Frankton Real Estate. She was reasonably positive on J.Pt. - says there are some nice sections out there with great north facing sun for around $250-$280k ... build a $400k Jennian or David Reid home and you've got yourself a very nice property. Rent in Lake Hayes Estate in the meantime for around $500pw. New school will be finished by the time house is.

    Interest is increasing according to her ... shortage of listings , nationwide story at the moment. Maybe time to make the move.

    We are selling at $1.4m so will be mortgage free and looking to buy some commercial property for some passive income. The golfing options in and around Queenstown look spectacular !!

  10. #10
    Legend minimoke's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Great Gold Guru View Post
    Q4. I do alot of business in Christchurch. Is there any reason why Air NZ doesn't run early morning flights out of Queenstown to arrive in Christchuch at between say 8.00 and 8.30am ... the last flight back leaves CHC at 4.20pm , which again is pretty early. Is this due to the terrain and dangers of landing in the dark ... or is there just no demand.
    Its one of my favourite airports and I'm looking forward to heading down there again in a couple of weeks. I reckon this is probably the world No1 landing approach!

    As I understand it, its a "visual" landing airport where the pilots need to be able to see not only the runway (and lake) from the front but also the mountains on either side of the wing tips.

    An alternative when I have got stuck its to drive from Queenstown to Dunedin or Invercargill for flights. But a bit tricky in winter with ice on the roads.

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