We all want value for money when we make a purchase. But, what does value for money mean when you're buying the biggest ticket item of all - a home?
Value for money is achieved when both the house and the neighbourhood it's in deliver you a higher quality of life relative to what you could buy for the same price elsewhere.
What makes people the happiest in their home?
A well-known study* set out to measure what made the most difference to people's life satisfaction - house or neighbourhood. The authors found that the age of the house and the ability to control the temperature inside had the most impact on people's life satisfaction. The size of the house fell a long way behind.
The World Health Organisation tells us that homes should be kept to a minimum temperature of 18 degrees celsius. The average temperature in New Zealand living rooms in winter is an unhealthy 13.5°C. The New Zealand Building Code aims to set minimum standards of insulation for new homes to ensure they are warm, but there are no such controls over older homes.
At Hobsonville Point, a new township 20 minutes northwest of the Auckland CBD, urban planners are in the unusual position of being able to design an entire suburb from scratch, incorporating all of the latest findings from research showing us what creates happy homeowners and communities. The developers have set standards that go well beyond what is required by the building code in order to ensure that all the new homes are warm, well ventilated and easy to heat.
What makes people happiest in their neighbourhood?
The authors of the study found that interaction between people had the biggest impact on neighbourhood satisfaction. Fortunately, it is possible to design homes and streets that facilitate interaction. In Auckland, Hobsonville Point again provides a good example.
Hobsonville Point's layout is based on much-loved suburbs like Freemans Bay and Ponsonby. With front doors facing the street; low fences; pedestrian and cycle-friendly streets; and 26ha of parks, opportunities to bump into your neighbours are maximised.
The speed of traffic is carefully managed making it safer for kids to play outdoors. Development is underway now to create a hospitality hub which will provide a place to socialise on the waterfront.
What makes for a strong community?
We're not all the same, and research shows that the most diverse communities also happen to be the strongest, most vibrant ones. To that end the township's developers are building many different types of housing, from single bedroom apartments through to five bedroom standalone homes.
Prices range from $490,000 through to $1.75m. What makes these homes value for money is that they, and the neighbourhood they're in, provide a high quality of life for their inhabitants.
*McCrea et al, 2005. http://espace.library.uq.edu.au/
First Home Buyers $450,000-$650,000*
Apartments from $490,000
Terrace homes from $755,000
Duplexes from $839,000
Standalone homes from $949,000-$1.75m
*go to axisseries.co.nz for conditions
Visit This Weekend
Come and explore Hobsonville Point and visit our street of showhomes. Don't miss the Hobsonville Point Information Centre where you can pick up a price list for all the homes available.
Show Homes
Liquidambar Drive
Open daily, 10am-4pm
Information Centre
Hastings Street (behind Catalina Café)
Open daily, 10am-4pm
