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Duke & Cooke Property News |
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Published on: 10th August 2009 TAINTED PROPERTY LIST COULD BE RELEASED TAINTED PROPERTY LIST COULD BE RELEASEDThe Tasman District Council is examining an ombudsman's ruling to see if it will have to reveal the locations of more than 800 potentially contaminated sites in its district. Environment and planning manager Dennis Bush-King said today it was unclear whether a ruling on the Hawke's Bay Regional Council meant the Tasman council would have to publicly disclose whether a site was potentially contaminated. The council's contaminated sites register currently has 890 potentially contaminated sites listed on it. It has refused to release the list but will provide specific information on a specific site if people request a Land and Information Memorandum report on it. (The Nelson Mail, Monday 3 August 2009) RENTING MORE AFFORDABLE, SAYS REPORTRenting, rather than buying, is more affordable for first-time house hunters in Nelson, but not by much, according to a new report. A BNZ-sponsored report from interest.co.nz shows that, during the month of June, would-be first home buyers were better off renting than buying as another slight rise in interest rates and house prices widened the affordability gap. Median rent for a three-bedroom house in Nelson/Marlborough was $304 per week in June, down from $316 at the same time last year. In June, a two-year fixed mortgage rate of 6.25 per cent and a lower quartile-priced home of $255,000, required a weekly mortgage payment of $323.78, down from the $438.55 during the same time last year. The report assumed couples aged between 25 and 29, both earning a median income, and living in a three-bedroomed home with rent of $310 per week. Their choice was to either stay renting or to buy a low-value house with 80 per cent home loan at the average two-year fixed rate. (The Nelson Mail, Monday 3 August 2009) NEW-HOME BUILDING IN TROUGHThe number of new homes being built in the Nelson region is still well down on this time last year, with the drop particularly noticeable in Nelson city, consent figures show. The Nelson City Council issued 147 consents for new homes in the year to June, which was just half the number issued the previous year. In Tasman district the drop was not as marked, with the Tasman District Council issuing 19 per cent fewer consents. It issued consents for 243 new homes. (The Nelson Mail, Tuesday 4 August 2009) PLUNKET RENOVATION SHORT OF HELPERSThe Stoke Plunket clinic is getting its first major revamp since it was built in the 1960s and now the organisation needs more volunteers to make it really hum. Volunteer Rachel Thomas said the walls were being extended over the porch, creating two spaces inside. They will be linked by bifold doors that can be opened up to provide a large space suitable for education courses or public hire. The $70,000 job began about six weeks ago and, like many building jobs, there have been unexpected hurdles. Builders found water had been pooling on the roof and the roof had to be replaced. The roofing iron was not reusable as was hoped. Nelson Tasman Bays and Richmond sub-branch treasurer Shelley Furness said the organisation had about $20,000 for the job. Anyone keen to get involved can contact Mrs Thomas at the Plunket area office on 539 4323. (The Nelson Mail, Tuesday 4 August 2009) WHAT ABOUT OUR RATES?Nelson and Tasman property owners have one thing in common - they're appalled by how much their rates have increased in recent years. With attention now on a possible merger of the two local authorities, obvious questions seem to be: What's the difference in rates between the two districts and how might that change under amalgamation? Nelson city councillor Aldo Miccio, the man who started a petition calling for a review of amalgamation options, does not expect the move to result in widespread rate reductions. That's not what his exercise is about - "it's about progressing the region" - but he accepts the financial bottom line is what worries many people. Even Mr Miccio cannot help but be intrigued by how the two council's rates currently compare. The Nelson Mail looked at rates and water charges of four randomly selected three or four-bedroom homes, each with a rateable value of $350,000, in Nelson, Richmond, Motueka and Takaka. The results show that Nelson homeowners are paying up to $672 less in rates than their Richmond counterparts, up to $854 less than Motueka homeowners and up to $993 less than those in Takaka (where section sizes tended to be larger). Nelson ratepayers do have to dig deeper to pay for water, largely due to the multimillion dollar water treatment plant the city council constructed a few years ago. In the examples examined by the Nelson Mail, Nelson residents had water bills ranging from $383 to $775 last year while Richmond residents paid between $238 and $324. The Takaka and Motueka properties did not have metered water but they had other charges built into their rates to cover things like community boards, the Motueka stopbank and Takaka firefighting. Nelson City Council Number of ratepayers: 20,788 2009-10 total rates take: $47.8m Total debt at June 30, 2009: $51.4m Tasman District Council Number of ratepayers: 22,440 2009-10 total rates take: $55.41m Forecast debt at June 30, 2010: $124m (The Nelson Mail, Wednesday 5 August 2009) WATERFRONT PARK FOR MAPUA'S FORMER TOXIC SITE GETS CLOSERWork on the $1 million Mapua waterfront park is likely to start in the next few months. A waterfront amphitheatre, promenade area and a heritage orchard are some of the features included in the design for a park which aims to transform Mapua's barren former toxic site. An auditor's report released last Friday gave the former Fruitgrowers Chemical Company site the all-clear for commercial, residential and open-space use. A meeting today between council staff and Mapua-based landscape architect and urban design expert Robin Simpson would determine what order work on the park should be carried out, said community services manager Lloyd Kennedy. Ms Simpson is leading the concept plan with Nelson landscape architect Heidi Stewart. The Mapua site is owned by the Tasman District Council, and was dubbed the most toxic site in New Zealand, after it was contaminated by agricultural chemicals. (The Nelson Mail, Wednesday 5 August 2009) COUNCILS ASKED TO REVEAL SITESThe Tasman District Council and Nelson City Council are being challenged to publicly release the locations of potentially contaminated sites in their areas. The councils have received requests from various media, including The Nelson Mail, to release the information under the Official Information Act. The requests come in the wake of a ruling by the Office of the Ombudsmen forcing the Hawke's Bay Regional Council to reveal the locations of more than 3000 potentially contaminated sites. Tasman District Council environment and planning manager Dennis Bush-King said the council had received three requests to identify potentially contaminated sites in its district in the past few days. "We are still considering them at the moment," he said. The council would be responding in due course, as it was obliged to do. The council has a register of more than 800 potentially contaminated sites. It has previously refused to make it public, but will provide information on a specific site if people request a land information memorandum. Nelson City Council planning and consents divisional manager Richard Johnson said the Nelson council had a similar register, which was based on the historic land uses of sites. He did not know how many potentially contaminated sites were on it but believed it was "not a significant number". The Nelson council has received two requests under the Official Information Act to identify potentially contaminated sites. Mr Johnson said the council "would respond to what is asked for". Under the act, the councils must respond within 20 working days. (The Nelson Mail, Thursday 6 August 2009) HOUSES A HAND UP, NOT A HANDOUTAn army of volunteers has launched into building four new houses in Nelson for low-income families. The volunteers are pitching in for Habitat for Humanity, a non-profit Christian organisation which builds affordable houses for needy families to pay off interest-free. Habitat for Humanity Nelson chairman Julian Shields said the shells of the houses in St Vincent St were expected to be completed in about eight weeks. The volunteers, mostly from churches, were working on the project six days a week. He said it was hoped the houses would be finished off inside by the end of the year, but that would depend on funding. The organisation needed $400,000 to fit out the houses and landscape the sections and was in the process of applying for grants to help fund that. (The Nelson Mail, Thursday 6 August 2009) PROPERTY WATCHChanges in Queen St The downturn appears to be hitting Richmond's Queen St. Smiths Sports Shoes closes today. Its owner, Steffan Eden, refused to comment, saying the circumstances were personal. It follows news this week that the DNA with Style fashion store is also closing after going into voluntary liquidation. Meanwhile, the Kitts Shoes Richmond store has become available for lease, a little over a year since it opened in the premises formerly occupied by Paper Plus. Co-owner Tony Aubrey said he was looking to relocate to smaller premises in Richmond. Kitts Shoes also has a store in Nelson. Both the Nelson and Richmond stores are being advertised for sale, price by negotiation, through Colliers International's Nelson office on the website www.realestate.co.nz. It is an "attractive, profitable business that has been selling shoes successfully in Nelson for over 80 years", the advertisement says. Section sales rebound First National has sold 14 sections since the beginning of July - about the same number that it sold during the entire year previously, principal Colin Wilson says. "[The section market] has definitely picked up." Mr Wilson said the final stage of the Greenmeadows subdivision in Stoke had been popular, with 27 of the 44 sections either sold or under offer, while the Champion Estate subdivision at Richmond had seen another seven sales since its prices were lowered. New firm finds a home A 642-square metre industrial-zoned section at 69 Ellis St, Brightwater has sold through Summit commercial agent Bevan Dixon to a family establishing a motorhome business and storage units. Gwen Nicholson of Beefree Motorhomes said she and her husband John Schulze ran a tourism accommodation business in Australia, and recently moved back to New Zealand to be closer to family. Her son James Nicholson and his partner Emma Steans were also looking for a business venture, so they had created the business together. "We're pretty much doing what we were doing in Australia, other than it's on wheels rather than on bricks." She said they lived in Brightwater, making the site a "convenient" base. They expect to take possession next week and start operating from there as soon as possible. Auction gets results The auction of a deceased estate property at 10 Martin St, Wakefield saw the 1960s home with three double bedrooms sell under the hammer through Ray White agent Grant Chaney for $280,000. He said he hadn't taken a lot of properties to auction in the past, but was now "a lot more enthusiastic" about using it as a sales method. Between 50 and 70 people attended the auction last Sunday, and four people bid. "I think it's been a fantastic sale," Mr Chaney said. "It's a fair price for the vendors and the purchasers." The property has an RV of $280,000. (The Nelson Mail, Saturday 8 August 2009) DID YOU KNOW?Under the current standards Auckland District Law Society lease form you can give rent review notice to your tenant anywhere from 3 months before and up to 3 months after the scheduled review date without incurring any significant disadvantage. THOUGHT FOR THE WEEKMiddle age is when your age starts to show around your middle. |
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This publication is compiled by Duke & Cooke Ltd, valuation and property specialists. The information contained within this newssheet has been obtained from various local sources and no responsibility is held for any parties relying on the accuracy of this information without obtaining independent verification. To contact us regarding circulation of this service: Phone +64 (03) 5489104, Fax +64 (03) 5468668, or email: admin@valuersnelson.co.nz |