NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

House prices in 337 Auckland school zones: Search the city on our interactive chart

Ben Leahy
By Ben Leahy
Reporter·NZ Herald·
29 Apr, 2024 05:00 PM9 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
35Comments

Subscriber benefit

The ability to gift paywall-free articles is a subscriber only benefit. See more offers by clicking the button below.

Already a subscriber?  Sign in here
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

Local schools play a big part in property-buying decisions for many New Zealanders. Photo / Dean Purcell
Local schools play a big part in property-buying decisions for many New Zealanders. Photo / Dean Purcell

Local schools play a big part in property-buying decisions for many New Zealanders. Photo / Dean Purcell

The Herald has analysed property prices for 337 Auckland school zones to discover where house prices are highest and lowest and where they’ve changed the most. Check the table below to see the results for your neighbourhood and across the city.

Tom Rawson might be living in Auckland’s most expensive secondary school zone, yet he believes he’s saving cash in the long run by not sending his children to private schools instead.

Home buyers like Rawson typically paid about $1.81 million in 2023 for houses within Glendowie College’s eastern suburban zone, according to analysts Valocity - making it the public high school catchment where families are forking out the most to live.

DO YOU HAVE A SCHOOL ZONE STORY? EMAIL US

The zone, which covers Glen Innes, Glendowie, Kohimarama, Remuera, St Heliers, Saint Johns, Stonefields and Wai o Taiki Bay, is also home to the $102m mansion owned by New Zealand’s richest man, Graeme Hart.

Unlock all articles by subscribing to this international offer

All Access Weekly

Herald Premium, Viva Premium, The Listener & BusinessDesk
Pay just
$15.75
$2
per week ongoing
See all offers
Already a subscriber? Sign in here
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Local schools play a big part in property-buying decisions for many New Zealanders, so the Herald has teamed with property analysts Valocity to reveal house and rental prices in more than 300 school zones across Auckland. You can add the name of a local school to the table below to see what it costs to own a house there and how much that has changed in the past decade.

Start your day in the know

Get the latest headlines straight to your inbox.
Please email me competitions, offers and other updates. You can stop these at any time.
By signing up for this newsletter, you agree to NZME’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.


Our analysis found Victoria Avenue Primary in Remuera is the city’s most expensive primary or secondary zone - even more pricey than Glendowie College - with homes selling in 2023 for a median price of $2.83m.

Bayfield School in Herne Bay in the inner west is the zone where prices have risen the most by dollar value over the past decade, jumping $1.3m between 2014 and 2023.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

That means those buying a typical Bayfield School zone house for $2.78m in 2023 are potentially forking out about $14,500 in monthly mortgage payments - or $7700 more per month than they would have typically paid a decade ago.

We can calculate that using the 20 per cent deposit on a typical 2014 home and 2023 home in the school zone.

Read More

  • House sales picked up in February, Auckland median ...
  • What new Barfoot & Thompson data says on Auckland housing ...
  • NZ and Auckland house prices: What can we expect from ...
  • Auckland house prices and sales up as summer arrives, ...

With the deposits, we can then use the average one-year fixed interest rate of 5.47 per cent in January 2014 and the 6.86 per cent average in January 2023 - as recorded by the Reserve Bank - to work out how much buyers would pay on the first year of a 30-year home loan.

Macleans College in the eastern suburb of Bucklands Beach, meanwhile, is the secondary zone where prices have jumped the most, rising $739,500 in 10 years to a median price of $1.68m in 2023.

School choice can play a major part in setting house prices, with real estate agents promoting popular high schools with phrases such as “Grammar zone” in their marketing. In other cases, the price has more to do with other factors - such as a high number of apartments in the neighbourhood which keeps the average price lower.

However, school zones remain a popular reference point for many New Zealand buyers, especially in Auckland.

In the zone

Living inside Glendowie College’s zone was a non-negotiable for Tom Rawson and his wife Anna, who paid $2m for their Glendowie home.

Anna studied at Glendowie in the late 1990s and the couple believe it delivers such a high quality, free education there’s no need to pay extra to send sons, Freddie, 6, and Jagger, 3, to a private school.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Instead, Rawson has used the money saved on private school fees to buy a second property in his sons’ names. He hopes it will give them a leg-up later in life or be used to cover costs like university.

“We bought with a 20-year mindset, and we made sure we were in the Glendowie zone,” said Rawson, co-owner of Ray White Manukau real estate agency.

“Private schools’ fees are pretty hefty now, and I thought I’d rather put the money towards their future via something else, like property.”

Glendowie couple Tom Rawson and Anna Scarborough-Rawson, here with sons Freddie, 6, and Jagger, 3, have decided to buy property rather than spend money on private-school fees.
Glendowie couple Tom Rawson and Anna Scarborough-Rawson, here with sons Freddie, 6, and Jagger, 3, have decided to buy property rather than spend money on private-school fees.

Glendowie College principal Gordon Robertson sees a familiar arc in the Rawsons’ story.

He’s been teaching at the college for 37 years and often sees former students return to the eastern suburbs to send their own kids to the school.

“It’s a desirable area,” he said about the college zone that includes a swathe of beautiful Auckland coastline from Wai o Taiki Bay to St Heliers Beach.

“They’ve enjoyed growing up there themselves and enjoyed the school, and so they want the same for their children.”

And it’s not just beaches and harbour views keeping house prices high.

Glendowie has fewer new townhouses and apartments than other well-known zones - such as nearby Auckland Grammar (with a $1.15m median sales price in 2023) or the North Shore’s Westlake Boys’ and Girls’ High Schools ($1.28m).

“Until the recent change to [planning rules], I think it was very hard to subdivide, and so you tend to have big family sections, which are more expensive,” Robertson said about his zone.

Fewer apartments and new housing means the zone’s population is also growing more slowly.

Given public schools are obligated to accept and provide free education to all children in their zones, that places less pressure from growing classroom sizes on Glendowie College with its 1210 students, Robertson said.

By contrast, the North Shore’s 3772-student Rangitoto College and the 2688-student Auckland Grammar have swelled in size, along with increases in apartments and infill housing in their zones.

It means Glendowie College is often described as a country school in the city, Robertson said.

“It’s a more personal-type environment where more people are likely to know each other,” he said.

Glendowie College is in a pocket close to many of Auckland’s most expensive suburbs.

The next three most expensive secondary zones are all nearby: Epsom Girls’ Grammar School (with a $1.75m median sales price in 2023), Macleans College ($1.68m) and Selwyn College ($1.55m).

Takapuna Grammar on the North Shore is the fifth most expensive zone, with a typical house price of $1.52m.

Most expensive: Victoria Avenue Primary zone

Real estate agents often describe Victoria Ave in Remuera as one of Auckland’s most prestigious streets, along with Remuera’s Arney Rd, Paritai Drive in Orakei and Cremorne St in Herne Bay.

Recent house sales on the street include the $23.8m sale of a 1000sq m, five-bedroom home previously owned by rich-listers Martyn and Jacqui Reesby, settled last year.

Another spectacular mansion, at 95 Victoria Ave, previously owned by Team New Zealand chief Grant Dalton, was listed for sale last year with a price tag of more than $20m.

While these homes might not all be in zone for Victoria Avenue Primary, it illustrates why the 421-student school has Auckland’s most expensive zone, with a $2.83m median sale price in 2023.

Families wanting to get into the zone face high barriers.

To simply buy a median-priced home in 2023, families will have typically needed a $565,000 deposit and to have borrowed $2.26m from the bank.

According to the Reserve Bank, the average one-year fixed interest in January 2023 was 6.86 per cent, meaning these home buyers will have had to pay about $14,824 in monthly interest payments.

Behind Victoria Avenue Primary, the next most expensive zone is Bayfield School ($2.78m), which covers parts of Grey Lynn, Herne Bay and Ponsonby.

Westmere School, covering parts of Grey Lynn and Westmere, was next, together with Churchill Park School in Glendowie and St Heliers, both with a typical 2023 price of $2.23m.

Ponsonby Primary School ($2.05m) and Stanley Bay School ($2m), covering parts of Devonport and Stanley Pt, rounded out the top six.

Biggest gainer: Bayfield School zone

Exclusive Bayfield School, with just 331 students in Auckland’s inner west, feeds an area where house prices have risen the most between 2014 and 2023, jumping $1.27m.

That’s not so surprising, given its zone - covering parts of Grey Lynn, Herne Bay and Ponsonby - includes some of Auckland’s most expensive and luxurious waterfront homes, owned by rich-listers, actors and celebrities.

Zuru billionaires Nick and Matt Mowbray bought a $24m waterfront Spanish-style villa in the school zone late last year, according to property website OneRoof.

New Zealand’s most expensive street - Cremorne St - is also in zone, with mega-mansions worth an average of $13m each that include the about $30m home of marina developers Simon and Paula Herbert.

Briscoe Group chief executive Rod Duke’s $21m mansion, complete with a boat shed and private helicopter, is just outside the school’s zone.

The huge jump in Bayfield School zone house prices means buyers of a typical home now need to almost double the deposit they put down, from $301,000 in 2014 to $555,000 in 2023.

A 2023 buyer would also pay twice as much in monthly mortgage payments, up $7748 per month compared with 2014.

Biggest high school gainer: Macleans College zone

Home buyers in Auckland’s far eastern suburbs are living in the secondary zone where prices have jumped the most in the past decade.

The typical home in the Macleans College zone is now $1.68m, jumping $739,500 since 2014.

It means buyers of a typical home in the school’s zone suburbs - Bucklands Beach, Cockle Bay, Eastern Beach, Half Moon Bay, Howick and Mellons Bay - are having to fork out a lot more in mortgage payments to the banks.

A 2023 buyer would typically need $336,300 to afford a 20 per cent deposit on their home - that’s $150,000 more than they would have needed in 2014.

It also means they would be borrowing about $600,000 more from the bank and be paying an extra $4559 in monthly mortgage payments in their first year compared with 2014.

Valocity’s Wayne Shum said that like Glendowie College’s school zone, Macleans’ zone is still largely made up of bigger land blocks, which has helped to drive its median price higher than other well-known high school zones such as Auckland Grammar’s.

Ben Leahy is an Auckland-based journalist covering property. He has worked as a journalist for more than a decade in India, Australia and New Zealand.

Subscriber benefit

The ability to gift paywall-free articles is a subscriber only benefit. See more offers by clicking the button below.

Already a subscriber?  Sign in here
Save

    Share this article

    Reminder, this is a Premium article and requires a subscription to read.

35

Comments

Latest from New Zealand

New ZealandUpdated

Revealed: The first four housing projects backed by $100m fund

22 Jun 06:46 PM
New ZealandUpdated

Guardian patrols extend to Rotorua Central mall

22 Jun 06:46 PM
Opinion

The Conversation: Austerity politics and the real cost of 'savings' in schools

22 Jun 06:00 PM

Help for those helping hardest-hit

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Recommended for you
'Dangerous escalation': World reacts to US attacks on Iran
World

'Dangerous escalation': World reacts to US attacks on Iran

22 Jun 06:28 PM
Lord Spencer storms to victory at Te Aroha, impresses ahead of features
Racing

Lord Spencer storms to victory at Te Aroha, impresses ahead of features

22 Jun 06:23 PM
Jockey honours late father's promise with steeplechase win
Racing

Jockey honours late father's promise with steeplechase win

22 Jun 06:20 PM
Herald Hat-trick sports quiz: June 23
Sport

Herald Hat-trick sports quiz: June 23

22 Jun 06:03 PM
Guardian patrols extend to Rotorua Central mall
Rotorua Daily Post

Guardian patrols extend to Rotorua Central mall

22 Jun 06:00 PM

Latest from New Zealand

Revealed: The first four housing projects backed by $100m fund

Revealed: The first four housing projects backed by $100m fund

22 Jun 06:46 PM

It will enable 65 homes in Tauranga South, Pāpāmoa, Greerton and Bethlehem.

Guardian patrols extend to Rotorua Central mall

Guardian patrols extend to Rotorua Central mall

22 Jun 06:46 PM
The Conversation: Austerity politics and the real cost of 'savings' in schools

The Conversation: Austerity politics and the real cost of 'savings' in schools

22 Jun 06:00 PM
'Scale of need': NZ commits $16m to Ukraine as conflict endures

'Scale of need': NZ commits $16m to Ukraine as conflict endures

22 Jun 05:56 PM
How a Timaru mum of three budding chefs stretched her grocery shop
sponsored

How a Timaru mum of three budding chefs stretched her grocery shop

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
All Access. All in one subscription. From $2 per week
Subscribe now

All Access Weekly

From $2 per week
Pay just
$15.75
$2
per week ongoing
Subscribe now
BEST VALUE

All Access Annual

Pay just
$449
$49
per year ongoing
Subscribe now
Learn more
30
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search