If recency bias was prominent here I would start this blog with a nod towards weather as a massive con. Last week was like another dose of winter. Rain, wind, sideways wind even. It has been far from pleasant however, for those who live here we know this is not the usual.
Moving on, and before we start I posted some stats recently on my Facebook page for the Tauranga City housing market in the month of November. If you have not seen those there are some interesting statistics regarding average house price last year vs average house price this year for the month of November. The main one to touch on is the 12-13% reduction we have had in average sale price compared to November 2021 in Tauranga City (Includes Mount Maunganui and Papamoa). With the reserve bank estimating a total fall of around 18.9% this would mean we are roughly two thirds of the way towards the bottom. Naturally this is crystal ball gazing but at least we have some sort of gauge.
This week I wanted to touch on the pros and cons of living in Tauranga. First of all I will look at the pros and when initially writing this for a guy who spent seven years living in Hamilton prior (no offence Hamilton) the list was long! This weeks blog is penned for people thinking of moving to Tauranga in the near future or who have a long term plan to end up here. I hope to outlay some clear information regarding what it’s like to reside here.
Let’s start off with the classic kiwi tradition of ‘heading to the beach’. We absolutely love laying on the sand, building sand castles and getting roasted like a shrimp on the barby! In Tauranga and in particular Mount Maunganui you have an abundance of options when it comes to beautiful, warm, rich with ammenities, classic east coach New Zealand beaches. If you start at one end and decide it’s too busy just carry on down Ocean Beach road until you find a spot to your liking!
Next is the weather. Growing up in the Waikato you could forgive me for being fascinated by how superior the weather is here; I will say it does get windy here at times but unfortunately that is part and parcel of living next to the sea. The temperature hardly drops below 10 degrees during the winter (at it’s worse) and whilst it gets hot here during the summer that trusty old sea breeze is always there to turn the heat bearable.
The views! Oh the views! As a Real Estate Agent you get to see some utterly amazing properties that have views that motivate you to keep on working hard to one day have for yourself. A view of Mount Maunganui itself is an extremely satisfying and special kind of view. Because of Tauranga’s geography many residents experience views of water, beach, the mount etc.
A few more selective depending on what you enjoy pros; are the range of stunning golf courses Tauranga is fortunate to boast, multiple fantastic malls with a large range of shops to choose from and I find the all round mood of people who live here to be high. who knows, maybe its the sea salt?
Now the cons… I would love to say there isn’t any but then I would be blatantly lying to you. Like any city Tauranga does have cons, let’s start with TRAFFIC – it’s not great. In saying this it does very much depend on where you live, what time of day and where you are heading, an issue for any major city in NZ. The geography of our city also poses a problem in this regard, similarly to Auckland there aren’t many different routes to use to get from one end of the city to the other. When trying to understand this, imagine a funnel and during peak hours you’ve poured way too much substance in and it’s all trying to squeeze through the skinny tube.
Another personal con for me (however not proven or prescribed by a doctor) is I seem to have developed hay fever since I have lived here, something that has never caused me issues anywhere else I have lived. I wonder whether it is something to do with the heat or the salt in the air. Whilst not a major it is something to be aware of.
Last but not least I will comment on the lack of great bars and restaurants per capita here. I believe the rapid growth in population in such a short time has caused this perception. I will admit in the last wee while there seems to have been multiple pop up however I am yet to try them out so I can not comment on whether this has fixed it.
Overall Tauranga is a great place to live, you will love the near tropical conditions coupled with the beach on your doorstep, and even better now; after reading this you know a Real Estate Agent who could sell you a house over here!