In the Tauranga/Mt Maunganui/Papamoa area, that figure is as high as 50 per cent says Dickie Burman, a Bayleys branch manager. Many are in a hurry to buy a property.
In Hamilton, Aucklanders are making enquiries on every single property from the average price down, says regional manager Stephen Shale.
It's not just "traditional investors" looking to buy in Hamilton, says Shale. Local agents are also receiving enquiries from first home buyers who don't plan to live in the property. It's their way of getting a foot on the bottom rung of the property ladder.
Once Aucklanders make it to the Bay of Plenty they have already made the decision to buy and don't want to waste time, says Burman.
They're more decisive than locals and are less likely to quibble over a few thousand dollars extra on an auction price.
"To a local, five to ten grand is a lot of money. To an Aucklander, it's neither here nor there," says Burman.
The most popular property for Auckland investors is lower priced properties in reasonable locations, says Burman. Typically, says Burman, Auckland investors are on the hunt for low priced modern homes on easy care sections, for which they're willing to pay $450,000 to $600,000. For that money they get a three-bedroom, brick and tile house on a 500 to 600sq m property.
The popular suburbs for investors are Otumoetai, Brookfield, Bellevue, the Bayfair end of Mt Maunganui and parts of Papamoa.
When it comes to yields, cities such as Tauranga, Rotorua and Whangarei offer rental returns that Aucklanders could only dream of in the current market. According to QV the gross yield in central Tauranga/Greerton is 5.3 per cent, Whangarei's Morningside/Raumanga and Maunu districts are returning 6.1 per cent, and in the Ngongotaha, Pleasant Heights and Koutu areas of Rotorua an investor can make a 7.4 per cent gross yield, according to QV figures.
The median rents for the three respective areas are $340 (Tauranga), $295 (Whangarei) and $275 (Rotorua). And the median purchase prices according to QV are $336,000 (Tauranga) $251,000 (Whangarei) and $192,000 (Rotorua).
Anyone willing to take a punt on even smaller centres can get better yield for their Auckland investment bucks. Kaikohe, for example, has a median price of $130,000 and gross rental yield of 8.8 per cent. South Waikato's median price is $124,000, median rent $190 and a gross yield of 8 per cent.
On those numbers it's no wonder that regional agents are seeing more goggled-eyed Aucklanders at auctions.
Westerman cites the example of an Auckland couple who had to pinch themselves when they discovered how affordable property is in Taupo. The couple, from St Lukes, would have to pay up to $2 million for a home in their street.
"They could instead buy 8-10 homes within Taupo that would easily rent out and provide them with a retirement-investment portfolio," says Westerman.
At the time of writing, Bayleys had a two-bedroom standalone home in Tonga St, Taupo on the market for $149,000.
Typically, however, investors are looking around the $350,000 mark, says Westerman.
"You can still buy a modern three-bedroom, two-bathroom home here within a good area for $350,000," she says.
Some buyers are looking to rent out homes to long-term tenants until they're ready to retire, at which point the owners move in themselves. Mark Macky of Bayleys in the North says that Aucklander interest is increasing.
"For $300,000 in Whangarei they get quality houses that can be rented out for a good income."
These aren't investors who own 15 properties already and want to add to their portfolio, says Macky.
"They are first-time investors who are thinking of buying an investment property and ask: 'How does this work?'."
"For investors buying investment property in Northland the capital gain will not be as much as you may be able to get in Auckland, but the yield is significantly better," says Macky.
Nonetheless, Macky believes the region will do a "catch-up", which means investors could be getting capital gains after such price rises dry up elsewhere.
What's more, he says: "As a percentage gain, the time for Tauranga and Hamilton was probably 12 months ago. The time for Northland is probably now," he says.
Rental yields in Hamilton are still better than Auckland.
By Auckland standards Rotorua is also awash with reasonably priced rentals, says Bayleys agent Beth Millard.
"In the under-$300,000 investment you can buy an investment property on the Western side for $250,000 to $320,000 and get $350 a week rental for it. People are using that to get on the first rung of the property ladder," says Millard.
Rental yields for the Bay of Plenty centre range from 4.6 per cent in Holden's Bay/Owhata/Ngapuna to 7.4 per cent and median prices from $192,000 to $321,000.
One the web: bayleys.co.nz/beyondauckland
