New Ramarama subdivision progresses

First home buyers in South Auckland welcomed moves in mid-2021 to accelerate the construction of hundreds of new houses in one of the country’s largest residential developments.

Housing, worth more than half a billion dollars, is included in the Hunua Views subdivision. Part of the 361 hectare, mixed-use precinct of Drury South Crossing, the estate was originally scheduled for completion over six years. Ultimately, some 90 hectares will encompass various community facilities including a childcare centre, recreation areas, wetlands, parks, walking and cycling tracks.

A chronic shortage of affordable housing in the region saw the completion timeline brought forward to 2024, but with high demand for the homes, they were not marketed online. Instead they have sold off-plan to a waiting list of buyers who pre-registered their interest.

After the announcement in September 2021, Classic Group director, Peter Cooney said the new construction time frame would allow hundreds of first home buyers to gain a foothold in the property market.

“This timeline has been pulled forward to meet market demand and help address the housing shortage in a city which desperately needs quality, affordable housing,” he explained. “This community was designed to be as accessible as possible to a range of people, including first home buyers.”

A third of 10 construction stages were set to begin in September 2021, providing 62 families with completed houses by the middle of 2022. Under the advanced construction programme, a further 200 houses are scheduled to be built by the end of 2023.

Classic Developments development manager, Scott Keene, said the expectation was that many of the houses would be purchased by some of the 5000+ workers who will eventually be employed by businesses to be built in the new industrial area.

“The high demand for homes in the first two stages of construction caught us by surprise as business at Drury South Crossing was not yet underway,” Mr Keen said.

“What we can see from the sales data is around half of those purchasing properties are first home buyers. We know that many of them are being priced out of the market further north and are buying in Hunua Views as a way of getting an achievable foothold in the property market.”

He added that resource consents applications were underway for larger stages.

CEO of Drury South Crossing, Stephen Hughes said, when completed, Drury South Crossing will be home to around 2600 new residents and employ thousands more workers in a new purpose-built industrial area.

“Over a decade of planning has gone into this project….with a number of environmental considerations being made such as the planting of half a million native plants and trees,” he said.

“Every house will also feature a zinc-free roof and rain water tank which holds water runoff before being treated in our stormwater management system – helping to mitigate the impact of large volumes of water reaching local streams.”

LAND SCARCE BUT HOPE ON THE HORIZON

The shortage of land in Franklin, with many new subdivision still looking at 2022 release dates, has seen section prices continue to rise, subsequently affecting build prices too.

However, new subdivisions are underway with many local building companies offering house and land packages although most already have waiting lists of people keen to secure a plot meaning it is likely to be well into 2022 before homes are built.

Unfortunately, projected houses and land packages seem to hover around $1.1million with only a handful under that price and others considerably more putting affordability into question for many people, in particular, first home buyers.

In this pressured housing climate it pays to register your interest with building companies if keen to purchase within Franklin. LOOKING AHEAD SOME NEW SUBDIVISIONS INCLUDE:

Patumahoe – early 2022; Pukekohe – Belgium Road, mid 2022; Pukekohe Hill – new sections expected around end of 2021/early 2022 Paerata Rise – new stages mid 2022; Clarks Beach – new stage, late 2022; Auranga, Drury.

FOR THE BEST IN HOME DESIGN AND BUILDING Classic Builders ‘secret sauce’

When it comes to choosing a company to design and build your dream home there’s no shortage of options. But because it is one of the biggest decisions you’ll probably make in a lifetime, it’s important to have confidence in who you eventually settle on. You’ll want them to be the best for the job.

Classic Builders regional manager, Stephen Halliday, is on hand for expert advice.

Here, at Classic Builders, we take that responsibility very seriously; perhaps, more than most. That’s because we have a bit of a ‘secret sauce’ to ensure what we deliver to each and every one of our clients is always above and beyond expectations. And, while we can’t tell you everything that goes into it, we’d like to let you in on a few of our extra special ingredients.

WE PUT OUR ‘BOOTS ON THE GROUND’ FIRST

We mean this quite literally – before we do anything else (like talk to you about designs or make an estimate on cost) we visit the site to carry out an evaluation. So, if you’re just considering a section to buy, have had one waiting in the wings for a while, or are thinking about subdividing where you currently live, we’ll come to you and check it out.

Sometimes this means we take longer to quote, but that’s actually a good thing because we put in more groundwork up front to uncover more detail than many others do. We do this so we can offer you the most realistic view of what it will take to deliver your vision (from time frames to budget).

You’ll be interested to know that we don’t (always) win work on price and that’s due to the value we provide up front. Many people think building a home is stressful and expensive, so it’s pretty cool that when we hand over the keys, most of our clients want to do it all over again.

MEET STEPHEN,

HE’S YOUR LOCAL

ON THE GROUND Regional Manager, Stephen Halliday has lived and worked in Auckland his whole life, building in the South Auckland region for the better part of 25 years.

While covering an area from Te Kauwhata and Miranda in the South, across to Waiuku in the West, Karaka, and also East Auckland’s Clevedon, Whitford and Beachlands is no mean feat, it’s one he takes in his stride to deliver a service that is second-to-none. “We are a local team which cares about our region and our clients. This is why we focus on getting to know them as much as possible before we start the design process. With a greater level of detail, we can get the plan just right for them,” Stephen says.

“It also means we can give them a realistic price right from the start, we pride ourselves on being open and honest at every stage of the journey. It’s important that our clients go into the build journey well educated, with full visibility and confidence in the whole process before any dirt is turned.”

START FROM SCRATCH, USE ONE OF OUR DESIGNS OR WE CAN WORK WITH YOURS

We’re pretty flexible here at Classic Builders. You are welcome to use one of our predesigned plans, or the team can help you start fresh. Alternatively, you can bring in your own plans – we can work with almost anything.

If you do decide to embark on a Design & Build with us, our experienced building consultants, Wayne Rhode and Debbie Doull, are always available to meet and talk you through the build process, start to finish. We also have an inhouse selection/product room to help with all those exciting decisions, as well as a colour consultant to work alongside you. With developments opening up in Clevedon, Karaka, Pukekohe, Glenbrook and Patumahoe, there’s never been a better time to build. So, if you’re interested in finding out how your dream home could become a reality, we’d love to help you get started. *Please note that even at Alert Level 3, we can do site evaluations by following all the required safety protocols.

Latitude Homes

– FOR EVERY LIFESTYLE

Latitude Homes’ principal belief is that everyone should be able to afford their own home and their purpose is to help New Zealander’s gain security through home ownership.

Marc and Kelly Hunter started the business in 2007 with a showhome on Great South Rd, Papakura; now they have a team of 12 franchise owners throughout the country building great quality, affordable homes to suit all lifestyles and budgets.

Providing families with affordable homes without compromising on the quality of the workmanship and materials used has been the winning formula which has seen the company grow to become one of the top group home builders in New Zealand. It’s this position which allows it to pass significant savings and knowledge through to their customers.

The business has grown to a level where Marc and Kelly are now involved in looking after all their franchise owners, providing support and guidance to each of them in order to ensure the level of service for everyone is of the same high level that Marc and Kelly pride themselves on.

A key addition to the Latitude Homes group are Todd and Ang Falgate who took over the Auckland region a few years ago.

Previously, Todd was the national key accounts manager for one of Latitude Homes’ main suppliers. After many years of dealing with Latitude Homes he decided that, he would join the Latitude family.

Todd’s many years’ experience in the building industry has brought a wealth of knowledge and skill to the business while Ang’s experience in operations and administration is an integral part of the smooth running Auckland operation.

Todd and Ang have put together a team of highly skilled people experienced in the building business, ensuring that they can help customers through the entire build process. This is something they look forward to doing as one of the approved build partners in the Paerata Rise lifestyle community between Karaka and Pukekohe.

As well as offering Paerata Rise house and land packages at very competitive

Above: Karlie, Todd, Ang and Matt from Latitude Homes South/East Auckland team.

Left: Todd and Marc discussing house and land deals.

pricing, they can also design and build a plan specifically tailored to customer requirements or offer a more costeffective solution by choosing a design from a wide range of standard plans.

As a registered Master Builder with years of building experience and the backing of a national brand, Latitude Homes is perfectly suited to offer you a complete building package.

From land selection, to building finance and plan customisation to bespoke design, there is every reason to build your home with Latitude Homes.

Download a copy of its first home builders guide from their website www.latitudehomes.co.nz.

With 50 + plans that can be customised to suit your lifestyle and budget, find out why so many Kiwis find comfort in a Latitude home.

Todd Falgate