KAMO asuburbforall reasonsandseasons

There’saKamoRivernear KyotoinJapan.Thenamemeans in Russiaand aKamoin ArmeniaandAzerbaijan.

BYSANDYMHYRE

Thename comesfrom aMaori verbmeaning “toblink”orthenounmeaning “eyelid” but hasalsobeen said to mean“tobubbleup” referring to hotspringsinthearea,inthe volcanicdomeofMount Parakiore.

Onthe other hand,there is aproposal withthe New ZealandGeographic Board to changethename to Te Kamo which,itsaid,wasthename of aprominentRangatiraand Tupunain thearea.

In anyevent,according to Bruce Maughamfrom Barfootand ThompsonWhangarei, Kamois one of themostdesirableareas to buy property in Whangareiand he says there areseveral good reasons for the attraction.

“Itisthelargestsuburbin Whangareiand hasagoodreputation forschools,facilitieslikesportsclubs and parks andithas avillagefeeltoit with awidevariety of homes.”

He saysbuyers arelookingthere becausetheywant to be close to family, to be nearschoolsandinschool zones andbecauseithas arange of properties on offerwhich include rurallifestyle properties,familyhomes, rental propertiesandunits.

He has buyers from alloverNew Zealand coming to viewpropertyplus those whohaverecentlyacquired their NewZealand Residency.

“Weget alot ofenquiriesfrom buyers whoare movingup to work at Northland Hospitaland we getbuyer referralsfrom BarfootandThompson officesin Auckland,”hesaid.

Althoughhouse priceshave softened throughoutWhangareiinthepastsix months or so,there areveryfewfirsthome buyers lookinginKamo.With interest ratesincreasingandhouse affordabilitydecreasingit’s hardfor thesebuyers to makea startinKamoso theyare lookingelsewhere.

He getslocal people whoare downsizing or upsizing to Kamo. They might be middleaged or older, maybe retiringfrom rural or lifestyle

Source:OneRoofdashboard/February2023 propertiesandmoving to be close to family. Theyare alsolooking forasafe area to move into.

Whatisholding price in Whangarei generally arelifestyleblockswitha good-sized shed. People buyingthese propertiesaremostlyfarmers whohave soldandarenot quiteready to takethe leap to move intotown, to asuburb.

Arguably typicalofbuyers coming to Whangarei and,more specifically, Kamo,isKim Rudolphwhoarrived from Auckland viathe Hokianga. Herparentsmovedtothe Hokianga permanentlyfromAucklandandshe stayedwiththemfor sevenmonths after leaving Auckland.She wouldn’t contemplategoingback to Auckland andcame to Whangarei withthe intentionof working.

She considered buyinginother Whangareiareas such as Regent, Kensington,Maunuand Parahaki,the areasshethought were thenicest. But, sheliked the Kamohousethe best.

“Iwanted athree-to-four-bedroom home,ithadtobesinglestorey anda house with characterona flatsitewith anicegardenandlandscaping.

Shespenttwo monthssearching online.Oncesheseriouslystarted lookingshe boughtthethirdhouseshe looked at over aweekend.

“Thehouse Iboughtis greatand Ireallyliked theareaandthestreets surroundingandit’s abonus to have good localshops.”

Whatshemight consider is retiring, oneday,toKerikeributfor the