By Zoƫ Baird
Friday 1st November 2002 |
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"It's the dream of a lot of New Zealanders to own a lifestyle block and have the experience of country life," says Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) rural spokesperson Murray Cleland. And in the last 10 years, as roads and telecommunications networks have improved, that dream has become a reality for more and more people.
Look at the figures. In March 1993, REINZ recorded 318 nationwide sales of lifestyle blocks (defined as "rural, fringe urban or recreational properties with residential or semi-productive rural uses"), worth a total of $53.3 million. In March this year, the figure was 711 sales worth $185 million. That's a 123% increase in numbers of blocks sold and a 247% increase in total price. Do the maths: the average sale price has increased 55% from $168,000 to $260,000.
Farming trends have boosted both supply and demand. Reduced incomes mean many farmers are subdividing their land. And small farmers are selling up and buying lifestyle blocks.
Some of the new "lifestylers" are there because they want to know where their meat and produce comes from, some want a pony for the kids, others want some distance from their neighbours. But unlike the old days when only hippies and 'real' farmers lived on the land, it's now often professionals who are buying up the latest five-acre subdivisions. Though they might also rear bison, cultivate truffles or raise alpacas, at least one member of the household probably works in town.
Kate Brennan and Kay Swann created the dedicated website www.lifestyleblock.co.nz after discovering a dearth of useful information when they bought their own lifestyle blocks near Cambridge. The market has so much purchasing power that the website is self-funding through sponsors, and they are in the process of setting up a US site. There are also a number of specialist magazines for lifestylers, such as Lifestyle Farmer and Growing Today.
Brennan says her experience is that lifestylers usually buy a block either for their animals or because they want to give their children room to run around.
As telecommunications improve, more remote blocks become a viable choice, says Bob Hargreaves from Massey University's Real Estate Analysis Unit. With the internet, a phone and a fax, many professional people can work from home. "The megatrend seems to me to be that the internet helps to overcome what the Aussies call the tyranny of distance," he says.
As with most early technology adopters, today's lifestyler will often be more affluent than the average Kiwi. While the national average sale price of a house was around $211,500 in June 2001, the national average sale price of a residential lifestyle property was about $265,000.
It's not all a bed of roses. The flash house in the country often means both partners in a couple need to go to work to pay for it, says Carol King, who lives on two acres south of Whangarei. And financial miseries are not the only downside to the Kiwi dream. King's husband Mike says many owners don't have the time to maintain their blocks or enjoy them, and even their social life begins to suffer. You buy a lifestyle block, he says, "but looking after it buggers up your lifestyle".
Rachel Wike, editor of Lifestyle Farmer magazine, says: "I think a lot of people might have gone onto the blocks thinking they would live off them, but then they've had to go back to their jobs."
Hargreaves also is quick to point out the social and financial tolls. "People find after a while Mum or Dad or both spend a lot of their weekends driving the kids in and out of town for their activities, and the lifestyle becomes not quite what they'd budgeted on. The other thing is that these little blocks can be hugely time-consuming."
As a result, turnover of property is quite high, Hargreaves says. Anecdotal evidence suggests many lifestylers only last a couple of years.
Mike King says already blocks seem to be getting smaller because of the work they entail. Quotable Value New Zealand statistics show the average size peaked at 4.8 hectares in 2000 before dropping back to 4.3 hectares in 2001.
Still, Banfield doesn't have any regrets. "I spent two-and-a-half years in the suburbs and I knew one neighbour. Now there's a barbecue for everyone in our (long) road every summer, you see children playing outside and even the schooling options are better."
Servicing the market
The new injection of people and money has created a renaissance in some rural communities. Want to take advantage of those cash-rich but time-poor lifestylers? Check out these job opportunities.
Teacher: the percentage of lifestylers with children is quite high and schools that were near closing point are being rejuvenated and expanded, says Kate Brennan. There is a rising demand for teachers.
Eco-tradesman: eco-plumbers, eco-builders and eco-electricians are in demand to advise lifestylers - especially proponents of organic set-ups - on how to minimise their impact on the environment by using solar energy, composting toilets and mud-brick construction.
Vet: someone has to keep an eye on those two cows, three sheep and 10 hens. While some rural vets find lifestylers a nuisance, providing veterinary services to the small farmer is a growing market.
Sheep crutcher: Carol King says where cities have their Hire-a-Hubby, the country has "hire-a-farmer". Often retired farmers, these handymen help shear sheep, drench cows, de-horn goats or put up fences.
Blocksitting agent: if you think it's a hassle going on holiday when you've got a cat, imagine the preparation when you've got a few pigs and ducks as well. Blocksitting agencies check prospective blocksitters, who charge a daily fee.
Agricultural feasibility consultant: interested in a block but not sure whether the soil will be suitable for the saffron you're thinking of growing? Concerned about whether there's going to be enough rainfall for those sunflowers you plan to export? Agricultural consultants will analyse a prospective purchase.
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