Most expensive and cheapest Bay homes

A modest three-bedroom home set on a large beachfront section is the most expensive house with an asking price listed for sale in the Western Bay.
Realestate.co.nz shows the Western Bay's 10 most expensive houses for sale start with a $7.9 million beachfront property on Oceanbeach Rd, Mount Maunganui.
Other top-end properties were not included in the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend report as their prices were unlisted or they were not listed on Realestate.co.nz.
The 4866 sq m section is the attraction of the Oceanbeach Rd property - the house itself is an ordinary three-bedroom, one-bathroom dwelling.
Marketed by Bayleys, the section has a double-width beach frontage and is the largest property on sale along the Mount Maunganui beachfront.
A Te Puna home on the market for $5 million features water views from every room, a geothermal pool, spa and gym, as well as the possibility of its own heli-pad.
The four-bedroom, three-bathroom property is set on a land area of 7120 sq m and also includes self-contained guest accommodation.
A luxury penthouse apartment on Marine Parade is on offer for an asking price of $3.75 million.
The 327 sq m apartment has uninterrupted sea and island views, and features four bedrooms and three bathrooms.
A six-bedroom home with six bathrooms at Aongatete on a 4.45ha section is on sale for $3.6 million.
A "superior ocean vista" is promised for a Marine Parade apartment listed at $2.95 million and includes a two-bedroom self-contained guest accommodation.
Ross Stanway, chief executive of Realty Services which operates Bayleys and Eves, told the Bay of Plenty Times Weekend prime beachfront properties, especially those with a large area of land, always commanded a premium price.
"In the last six months some of the sales that have occurred in that market still indicates there is strong interest for that kind of property.
"Without doubt, over the last six months the market has improved.
"We are now seeing more interest and more activity at that upper end.
"What [the top listed property] eventually sells for will remain to be seen in terms of where the market sees it."
At the other end of the market, a Bay of Plenty Times Weekend search showed there are still bargains to be had.
A one-bedroom apartment on Waihi Rd in Tauranga listed at $170,000 proves you can still get in the market with less than $200,000.
A basic bach at Wilson Rd North in Maketu is also listed at $170,000. The property is described as "a large double garage with attached room" and is on crosslease tenure.
A Fraser St two-bedroom unit tenanted for $200 a week is listed at $176,000.
A refurbished two-bedroom unit in Katikati can be bought for just $185,000. The unit, "perfect for first home buyers", features a secure single garage and a private garden area.
An inner-city pad is on offer for $195,000.
The two-bedroom apartment at Williams St has a floor area of 60 sq m and is a couple of minutes walk to the CBD.
Tauranga QV valuer Shayne Donovan-Grammer said it was rare to see a property selling for $7.9 million.
"It's a lot of money. There are not that many buyers around with that sort of money, looking to spend $8 million.
"There's not as many surprisingly high sales as there were a few years ago."
Big sale prices reported in the media could be misleading as the same property would have fetched even higher prices three years ago, he said. Beachfront properties retained prestige, he said, although there were also properties which needed to be sold due to the economy.
Mr Donovan-Grammer said top-end properties demanding premium prices tended to have an "element of scarcity" to it.
"It would have to be a really lovely site that's hard to duplicate, where you can't really find the site again as it's at the end of a peninsula [for example]."
It was rare for an apartment in the Western Bay to sell for more than $1 million, he said.
Mr Donovan-Grammer said it was possible to buy property in the Western Bay for as little as $150,000.
"If you look at the Bay of Plenty [as a whole], you can buy stuff in Kawerau for $50,000 or Murupara for $25,000, but in the Western Bay itself there aren't any really cheap locations.
"The cheapest would probably be something run-down in the worst parts of Tauranga for $150,000."
This was in contrast to the property boom three years ago, when it was almost impossible to buy property in Tauranga for under $200,000, he said.
"Now there's quite a few sales coming in under $200,000.
"During the peak it was a real scarce thing to find a title under $200,000. Now they are quite common in Tauranga, which shows you the state of the market."
Mr Donovan-Grammer said lower end properties had suffered more in loss of value than the next level up.
"The lower end involves a lot of investors buying for capital gain and now there's no capital
"Those sorts of properties have been hit quite badly. The next level up will have some sort of appeal to buyers.
"The real entry level ones are more vulnerable."