Garden City post-quake apartments come to market

Christchurch’s apartment market is considerably smaller than Auckland’s but the post-earthquake rebuild has seen a new development surge.

About 320 apartments or townhouses are being marketed or under construction for delivery to the market before March 2017.

They have a combined value of approximately $180 million with roughly half under offer or sold, according to Mark O’Loughlin of Harcourts who has about 80% of the listings.

He says the strongest buyer segment is people in the 50-plus age group.

Some are owner-occupiers or seeking a lock-and-leave town base, as well as investors looking for rental return and capital gain.

Mr O’Loughlin says most apartments on offer are what Aucklanders might consider “affordable,” with relatively few high-end units above the $1 million mark.

Younger KiwiSaver buyers are targeting apartments up to $450,000.

Demand is also being driven by the return of businesses to central Christchurch, the growing hospitality industry, tourism, government employees, professional services, and construction industry players.

Thousands of office workers are returning to work in new office buildings as they progressively open and they are also underpinning sales. For example, the BNZ Centre opened a few months ago, the new Environment Canterbury building was officially opened last week, and the Kathmandu building will be opened in June. Several other commercial buildings are already tenanted.

It is currently estimated there are now 14,000 people working in the central city.

The 2006 census revealed 7656 people living within the four avenues which define the central city.

There were approximately 52,000 workers, tenants, owners and guests residing within the four avenues before the first September 4 earthquake in 2010, and about 9000 people living in rental or owner-occupier properties.

But in the 2013 census there were 4899 occupiers of dwellings identified.

Earthquakes halved dwelling numbers
The number of residential dwellings in the central area, which was 4950 in 2010, reduced to 2331 in 2013 as demolitions took place.

Most of them had multiple tenancies – for example, the Park Terrace Apartments of 104 apartments had 236 bedrooms.

Christchurch City Council's goal is to have 20,000 residents within the inner city by 2020, although this is considered optimistic.

Meeting the goal would require 9500 townhouses or apartments or another 3000 central city properties.

The city council is improving parks, services, entertainment venues, lighting, pathways, cycleways and festivals to attract inner-city excitement.

The Margaret Mahey Park is now open although progress is slow on the Metro Sports Centre and convention centre.

A rebuild of justice and police buildings adds to the momentum along with retail developments on Cashel St.

A Fletcher Construction-led development of the area known as the Latimer precinct from Hereford St to the Avon River may deliver 800 apartments over 10 years although there appears to be no progress on construction or marketing yet.

Some of the projects under way include:

• Rakaia stage 1 of the 14-unit five-level DGM group Kilmore St project, from $439,000 and $740,000, construction under way for completion July 2016, two unsold;

• West Kilmore stage 2 of the 35-unit DGM project, priced from $540,000, completion mid-2017, marketing under way;

• Verve, 65-apartments over 11 levels on the corner of Victoria St and Peterborough St priced between $399,000 to $650,000, completion mid-2017, marketing under way;

• 284 Manchester St, six terraced townhouses in two separate Mews priced from $539,000, completion July 2016, sold out;

• 489 Manchester St townhouses by local developer Chris Evans Developments, which also has projects under way at 451 Barbadoes St, 72 Purchas St and 422 Barbadoes street, priced from $539,000, four unsold;

• Kilmore Mews close to the Pomeroys restaurant and cafe, two level townhouse Mews project of 17 townhouses, completed;

• *Prestons Central behind Rydges Hotel at 272 Barbadoes St, five levels of 25 apartments priced from $279,000 for 1 bedroom and $399,000 for two bedrooms;

• Leicester opposite Margaret Mahey Park at 282 Madras St, 43 apartments with onsite café, priced from $459,000, by Higgs Builders and developed by the Four Avenues Group, which is also developing St Martins Green Project; and

• Randolph 135 Kilmore St, a mixed commercial office space, retail ground floor and one, two, three bedroom apartments over three separate buildings between Peterborough and Kilmore street, apartments from $380,000 to $600,000, completion late 2017.

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