Current to 16 June 2020
THE
BLACK BOOK.
Picture Perfect In Paradise
5 Korimako Lane, Dalefield
Getting A Mortgage
More Than 90 Properties
What Buyers Want
What’s changed post Covid-19
for sale and for rent at your fingertips
Low listing levels = high buyer demand
The Black Book Editor Matty McLean
Design Ryan Teece
Black Group Realty Ltd. Selling Principal
hello. We always seem to have the same conversation with ourselves whenever we move to a new house - never again! But then, like clockwork, we find a property that we fall in love with, and thoughts of boxes and vans and unpacking become distant memories. Which is how we found ourselves in the position of moving into our most recent home in the past couple of weeks. But I tell you what - for all the hassle of shifting, there really is nothing like making a new space your own. See what I mean?! Those memories are already fading away. But it’s honestly been a pretty special experience, and has reminded us why we do what we do. To help other people experience that rush of finding a place you absolutely fall in love with is amazing.
Heather Walton 021 432 167 heather.walton@raywhite.com
Franchise Owner
Mark Bycroft 021 968 946 mark.bycroft@raywhite.com
Sales Manager
Jeff Tubman 0274 558 717 jeff.tubman@raywhite.com
Digital Strategist Ella Kiliuyi 021 418 638 ella.k@raywhite.com
Black Group Property Management
Which is why we think you’ll be so pleased with this week’s issue of The Black Book. With more than 90 properties for you to peruse at your leisure, we’re sure you’ll find something that will spark your interest, including the most magnificent feature property in Queenstown with views that are to die for.
General Manager
As well as all that, we delve into what your mortgage might look like post-lockdown, and property commentator Ashely Church gives us his take on whether that perceived property crash is, in fact, a myth.
Business Development
We so love having you check out The Black Book. And if you need any tips on moving houses, come see us - we’ve become somewhat of an expert!
Ray White Epom
Mac Bycroft 021 223 6893 mac.bycroft@raywhite.com
Josh Smith 021 235 8802 josh.smith@raywhite.com
Black Group Realty Ltd. Licensed (REAA 2008)
Heather Walton and Mark Bycroft Franchise owners - Ray White Epsom Black Group Realty Limited Licensed (REAA 2008)
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The Black Book is supbject to copyright in its entirety and the contents may not be reproduced in any form, either in whole or in part, without written permission. Opinions expressed in The Black Book are those of the contributors and not necessarily those of Black Group Realty Ltd or Ray White Epsom. No responsibility is accepted for unsolicited material.
M IS S I NG O UT?
Get every issue, direct to your inbox Issue One | 22 April 2020
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Bold and Breathtaking 39 Spencer Street, Remuera
pages of properties at your fingertips
How high can you go?
Bite Size
Locked In, Not Out
Liam Bratton talks pre-approval
Get ready to sell post lockdown
Our first online auction success
For most, their Black Book is a tightly guarded secret. In contrast, we want ours to advise, inspire, or just give you something nice to flick through on a Sunday morning with your coffee.
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contents. 4. 6. 8.
24.
Welcome Note Contents Inspire
10. Getting a Mortgage Post Covid-19
What Clients Want Ashley Church on the state of the market
14.
16. 18.
22. Feature Property 24. Properties For Sale 31. Properties For Rent 126.
14. Listen
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10. 18.
M IS S I NG O UT?
Get every issue, direct to your inbox
Issue One | 22 April 2020
THE
BLACK BOOK. ou ie launch ’
‘Blackr T
60
Bold and Breathtaking 39 Spencer Street, Remuera
pages of properties at your fingertips
How high can you go?
Bite Size
Locked In, Not Out
Liam Bratton talks pre-approval
Get ready to sell post lockdown
Our first online auction success
For most, their Black Book is a tightly guarded secret. In contrast, we want ours to advise, inspire, or just give you something nice to flick through on a Sunday morning with your coffee.
C L IC K H E
RE TO
SUBSCRI
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inspire. 8 |
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| 9
Getting A Mortgage POST COVID-19
We live in a completely different financial world compared to four months ago, and the banks have had to make some serious changes to the way they assess a mortgage application as a result.
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Most banks use approximately seven percent as the “test rate” for affordability - far from the 2.8 percent rate you can get on most mortgages these days.
T
he most obvious change is how the banks assess income. Previously, for a salaried employee, three payslips would suffice as evidence of income. Now the banks are having to assess the likelihood of you being employed in the future. For example, the tourism sector is a difficult industry at the moment, making it hard to give the bank enough comfort to lend. Similarly, anyone who relies on commission or bonuses will have to prove that they they are likely to continue. For example, it’s hard to know if someone who receives commission for selling cars is going to earn their usual income going forward. Are people selling their cars as they discover they can work from home? Or did everyone save so much money during lockdown that they have spare cash to put towards upgrading their current vehicle? Proving your future commissions will be the key to giving the bank comfort to lend to you.
from the last few weeks. Related to that is the ability to use income from flatmates. Although banks have previously viewed flatmates with relative skepticism, they have usually allowed applicants to use some of the earnings, especially for those with more than 20 percent deposit. But at least two banks have changed their policy for flatmates recently. One has completely removed the ability to use the income to help pay the mortgage. Another has limited the income to just one flatmate, no matter how many rooms you have in your house. The banks want to know that your income is enough to cover the mortgage without relying on others. Of course, getting flatmates in is a great way to quickly reduce your mortgage and I absolutely encourage it (if you can find a good one!). You just can’t rely on it to pay your mortgage as much as you could in the past.
It’s not all doom and gloom though. For some industries, proving they are back on track will be a simple matter. Contractors can show renewed contracts. Self-employed retailers can show the sales
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What hasn’t changed is the way that banks calculate how much mortgage you can afford. Most banks use approximately seven percent as the “test rate” for affordability - far from the 2.8 percent rate you can get on most mortgages these days. To be clear, no banks think the interest rates will return to 7 percent any time soon. But the banks have to calculate the worst case scenario, and if the past few months have taught us anything, it’s that things can change very quickly. This can be frustrating for home-buyers who know they can afford, for example, a $600,000 mortgage and the bank approves a significantly lower amount. It’s possible that the banks will lower this test rate in the near future, but it would be surprising to see it much below 6 percent. The banks have to stay conservative with what their customers will be able to afford in the future, even if it doesn’t seem likely. Finally, a lot of current mortgage holders recently applied for mortgage relief - a mortgage deferral, interest only payments or an extension to the term of the mortgage. If you are looking to sell your current home and upgrade, now is the time to revert back to how your mortgage was, if you are comfortable you can afford it. Applying for a new mortgage with a hardship in place will be very difficult and will raise a lot of questions around your income. n
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It’s possible that the banks will lower this test rate in the near future but it would be surprising to see it much below 6 percent. The banks have to stay conservative with what their customers will be able to afford in the future, even if it doesn’t seem likely.
listen. Podcasts to keep your ears happy.
Serial
The Rewatchables
Hamish and Andy
In 1999, a high school student in the US was killed, and shortly thereafter her teenage boyfriend was found guilty of her murder. But did he actually do it? Serial the podcast goes through the case with a fine toothed comb, and uncovers new information about what happened all those years ago. It’s truly fascinating and will have you gripped the whole way through - especially as the podcast team uncover new witnesses who turn the entire case upside down.
This is a brilliant podcast from the team at The Ringer, with each episode focussing on a different major motion picture - providing fascinating insights, fun facts and behind the scenes information about some of your favourite films. The commentary is excellent, and you’ll love some of the amazing trivia you never knew. Notable episodes include A Star Is Born and Back to the Future, and include guest commentators like Quentin Tarantino. You’ll be the perfect pub quiz team member!
There’s a reason lovable Australian duo Hamish and Andy have become two of the most enduring broadcasters in Australasia - their wit and their creativity is unparalleled. You will find yourself in hysterics as you listen along. Regular segments include Special Skills, where they test listeners selfproclaimed unique talents, or Pizza Roulette, where they have to guess which pizza is next to come out of the oven at a local restaurant. Ridiculous content, but ridiculously entertaining.
Do you have a favourite podcast that we should be listening to? Let us know. Email marketing.epsom@raywhite.com with your suggestions.
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Black Group Property Management
Value For Money - Hands On Service - Industry Knowledge
Get in touch with us to talk modern style property management today.
Mac Bycroft 021 223 6893 mac.bycroft@raywhite.com
Black Group Property Management Ltd.
Josh Smith 021 235 8802 josh.smith@raywhite.com
rwepsom.co.nz
WHAT
CLIENTS
WANT.
To buy
100m2 to 150m2 3 bedroom apartments in Parnell or the Parnell end of Remuera with $2 million to $3 million to spend. A well-built Parnell home with a good view and 3-4 bedrooms. Some grounds, but low maintenance as they are down-sizing. 250m2 to 350m2 up to $6 million. Modern, high-end home with sea views in Parnell or Remuera. They want something very special for their family and will spend up to $10 million. A home with a separate guest area or teenage area is required. They are cash buyers ready now. A 4 bedroom home in Remuera - budget of $2.5 million to around $3 million. Family homes in Double Grammar zone under $2m. First home buyer up to $900,000 - 3 bedrooms. North Shore or Auckland Central. A developing site in Auckland central, over 1000m2 Work from home: house has a lounge plus a bedroom separate from own living area. Under $1.3m, Auckland central. Central and City fringe with up to $1m to spend. A mostly cosmetic do-up is ok
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To rent
3-4 Bedrooms, 1-2 Bathrooms Epsom, Remuera and surrounding areas 3+ Bedrooms, 2+ Bathrooms Remuera, Glendowie, Epsom and surrounding areas 2 Bedrooms, 1-2 Bathrooms Epsom, Remuera and surrounding areas 2 Bedrooms, 1-2 Bathrooms Onehunga, Three Kings and surrounding areas 3+ Bedrooms, 2 Bathrooms Takapuna, Milford and surrounding areas
GOT IT? FLAUNT IT.
C L IC K HERE TO TELL US ABOUT IT
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: n o i n i p O
FOUR BIG HOUSING MARKET MOVES THAT NO ONE SAW COMING
In a year of unprecendented upheavel, with numerous changes no one saw coming, our property expert tries to make sense of it all - and becomes a betting man in the process, as we try and make sense of what the market’s going to do next.
Over most of the time that I’ve been writing a column for OneRoof, I’ve made it my practice to include my email address at the end of each article, so as to allow readers to correspond with me and share their own views. As a result, I receive a lot of feedback and, while a few of these emails would make your grandmother blush, the vast majority are either very kind or, where they propose a different perspective, still very courteous. Amongst this latter group, there are those who continue to write to me to tell me why this market is different, and why a particular set of circumstances is going to lead to an outcome we haven’t seen before - by which they almost always mean a property market crash. While I respect these alternative views, the evidence of the past simply doesn’t support such claims. More than 50 years of history tells us that the New Zealand property market is remarkably stable and behaves in a very predictable way in cycles of around 10 years, regardless of government policy and the performance of the economy. Put bluntly, there simply isn’t much that the New Zealand property market does which can’t be predicted within a broader framework. Which makes some of the big Covid-19-related changes, outlined below, all the more significant, because no one saw them coming.
1. The lockdown If I’d told you back in February that you were going to be confined to your home for around seven weeks – unable to leave for anything other than the absolute necessities of life – you wouldn’t have believed me. Yet that’s exactly what happened. The lockdown has changed the way we live, work, and communicate, and led to a binge of deferred maintenance and DIY up and down the country as Kiwis looked to make the best use of their enforced isolation. Our cultural memory will never be quite the same again.
2. LVR restrictions dumped Back in late November the Reserve Bank announced that it had reviewed the loan-tovalue-ratio restrictions and decided to leave them in place, without any tweaks, for another year. So who would have guessed that they would be entirely removed just four months later? Well, actually I did back in March, but even then it was more in the form of a challenge than a prediction. Their removal, which will last for at least a year, caught the market entirely off-guard and is likely to affect lending once banks are confident that house prices are holding stable. If you’re a first home buyer, in particular, this is great news.
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3. Interest rates lowered Over the past couple of years, most of the market chatter has been about the ‘inevitability’ of mortgage interest starting to climb again. Instead, another round of cuts has made mortgage interest rates in the mid to high 2’s the new normal as a result of unprecedented further cuts to the Official Cash rate, more quantitative easing (credit creation) and general market jitters around the world as a result of Covid-19. Market wisdom also suggests that these new low rates will be with us for a long time, which certainly won’t do anything to dampen house price inflation.
4. More rental housing available and slower rent increases The full impact of Covid-19 on the rental market won’t be known for a few months, as we’re yet to see the impact of Government rules which penalised landlords during the lockdown. However, there’s reason to believe that the supply of rental housing will increase as a result of three things: Airbnb properties being converted to long-term rentals due to the collapse of the international tourist market; stock becoming available as international visa workers vacate rentals and return to their home countries; and hotel rooms being converted to rentals until the tourism market recovers. We won’t know the numbers involved for a while, but the combination of these unpredicted Covid-19related developments may be instrumental in moderating any increases in the cost of renting over the next couple of years.
Will these four big moves change the fundamentals of the New Zealand property market in a way that defies the behaviour of that market over the past 50 years? My gut instinct is to say no.
Will these four big moves change the fundamentals of the New Zealand property market in a way that defies the behaviour of that market over the past 50 years? My gut instinct is to say no – the market will continue to do what it’s always done despite these extraordinary events. But only time will tell. n
Ashley Church is a property commentator for OneRoof.co.nz. Email him at ashley@nzemail.com
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chatter. Happy Anniversary
Black Group is home to some wonderful humans. We are pretty tight-knit and we aren’t shy about celebrating our successes. We thought, why not share some of the office chatter with you.
WE ALWAYS STRIVE FOR
10/10
HERE ARE OUR LATEST ONES
Heather Walton 10 years at Ray White
“Bill Myers and Maree Shaw team get a 10/10 because the whole process and sale went perfectly. The house looked great for viewing and my peace of mind, and the price we got at auction was even better than expected. I felt supported all the way and there was always discussion at every step. Bill gave me ideas on what to do to prepare clearing my house and names of people to help me. A family relation introduced me to Bill and he has delivered on that trust.” Purchaser - 6/38 Tawa Road, Onehunga
Yunny Park
4 years at Ray White
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“Ken [Choong], Simron [Singh] and Peter [Burgham] responded promptly whenever I had questions and were very engaging. It felt like they were not only working for the vendor but doing their best for the buyer too.” Vendor - 58 Waiatarua Road, Remuera
Succeding is always easier with the right tools.
S upport P rofile A dministration Database E ngagement
Black Group has a proven track record of giving salespeople the right tools to achieve the best from their business. Health, wealth, work-life balance and maybe the occasional award? Get in touch for a completely confidential chat about how we can help you succeed.
Heather Walton - Selling Principal - 021 432 167 Mark Bycroft - Franchise Owner - 021 968 946 Jeff Tubman - Sales Manager - 0274 958 717 Ella Kiliuyi - Digital Strategist - 021 418 638 Ray White Epsom Black Group Realty Limited Licensed (REAA 2008)
in paradise
PICTURE PERFECT
What’s more brilliant than one beautiful home in one of the most picturesque places in the world? Well, how about two? Welcome to 5 Korimako Lane - Queenstown’s most versatile property.
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They say you don’t need to venture far in New Zealand to find paradise. It’s a whole other story when you’re in Queenstown, though - paradise’s paradise. How, then, do you improve on perfection? You drive down Queenstown’s rural back roads, turn down Korimako Lane, and stop outside number 5. Welcome to Nirvana. Welcome home. “Yeah, this is special,” agent Ross Hawkins tells us with a smile. This is a house. Or it’s two houses. Or it’s home and income. Or it’s house for you, house for the kids. The main thing is this is whatever you want it to be. “It’s effectively two houses in one,” explains Ross Hawkins from Ray White Epsom. “It’s two separate pavilions. The walls at the end of each pavilion are more than a metre thick of in-situ poured concrete, fully insulated. And then there’s a link-up between the two of them with electronic access - you can lock it off from your phone or your iPad from anywhere in the world to close one side of the house off and treat it as two separate houses.” This has been an absolute labour of love for the vendor, who started dreaming up the concept for this magnificent property close to 20 years ago. “There’s a lot of houses that get built in the area by building companies and developers purely for the purpose of on-selling, and they don’t go the extra mile. This was not built as a spec. It was built by somebody to fulfil their dream,” says Ross. They call this spot the golden triangle - in the heart of Dalefield, you’re surrounded by vast mountain ranges and rolling hillsides. Shotover River practically flows at your feet. Picturesque doesn’t even begin to describe it.
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This was not built as a spec. It was built by somebody to fulfil their dream.
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You’ve got 360 degree views of the mountains, from the Crown Range and Cardrona Valley, right past Coronet round to Queenstown Hill, and then back around to The Remarkables. It’s difficult, even in Queenstown, to find that.
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And the beauty is in the tranquility - the boundary landscaping is elevated so as to block out any surrounding properties, giving you a feeling of not only privacy but ownership - it feels like you’ve managed to commandeer the vista entirely for yourself. “You walk out into the paddock and you’ve got the cherry blossom trees and the tussock mounds around the perimeter,” explains Ross. But wait, as they say, there’s more. “You’ve got 360 degree views of the mountains, from the Crown Range and Cardrona Valley, right past Coronet round to Queenstown Hill, and then back around to The Remarkables. It’s difficult, even in Queenstown, to find that.” The views alone make this alluring. Walk through the door well, you’ll find the whole experience intoxicating. “The quality of the materials used in this will blow you away it’s in-situ concrete, it’s cortene steel, beautiful timbers. You’re talking maintenance-free, natural products, but put together in a beautifully architectural way,” says Ross. You’re spoilt for choice with four large double bedrooms across both pavilions. Add to that the two separate lofts above the garages, and there is plenty of space for resting your head. Each pavilion has its own living quarters, stunning kitchen with high-end appliances, and opulent bathrooms on each side. “So you could have the whole Whanau there together, spread over the whole property, or you could treat it as two separates,” Ross tells us. “So it’s incredibly innovative, really, how it’s designed.” It’s that impressive yin and yang aspect - the symmetry, the clean lines - that really catch the eye and give it that wow factor, thanks to the local architecture team at Dravitzki Brown. “They really understand the area, and understand what works for the surrounds. But more than that, they love something exciting, and have really taken on the challenge of creating something unique here,” says Ross.
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“I think the materials they’ve used give it that natural homely feel. The high pitched ceilings throughout provide a gorgeous feature, because it gives it that feeling of space and height. And then you’ve got a fireplace in the lounge of the second wing as well, perfect for those winter evenings.” Plus, the house has been designed for someone to move in straight away. “It’s a turn-key offering - so someone can buy it and it comes fully furnished with brand new furniture for the whole place. There’s new beds, lounge suites, towels, right down to the potato peeler!” laughs Ross. “It’s a smart house, too. If you have someone coming to stay while you’re not there, you can set a code for that specific person to have front door access, and the code can expire once that person’s been and gone. And you can control all that from your phone.” There’s charm in that ease, and in that simplicity. But this is still a home that provides grandeur and magnificence. This is still a home that takes your breath away. “Whoever gets this is getting something really special,” Ross admires. Paradise. Nirvana. Utopia. Call it what you want. The beauty is, you can also call it yours. n
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The high pitched ceilings throughout provide a gorgeous feature, because it gives it that feeling of space and height.
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