Patea paradise - where everybody gets a bargain

Patea paradise.

Who says the Kiwi dream of a quarter-acre section in the suburbs is no longer attainable?

A quarter-acre of gently undulating land, with river and sea views, natives and fruit trees, outbuildings, and all services already hooked up for you to build your dream home, can be yours for just $27,000 - in Patea.

If building is not your thing, $69,000 will buy you a rustic three-bedroom cottage, just waiting for you to give it some TLC.

Alternatively, splash out on a home and business: a five-bedroom villa with shop attached for the medium sum of $175,000.

Another central section is priced at just $35,000. In comparison, the cheapest quarter-acre (about 1000m2) section in Whanganui is a bargain, well under rateable value, at $49,000; in Auckland a 200m2 section will set you back closer to $500,000.

Patea is a small town of roughly 1200 inhabitants, and is most famous for the Patea Maori Club and their 1984 hit single Poi E. Patea is also infamous for the closure of the Patea Freezing Works and the town's subsequent decline in September 1982; but that was 35 years ago, and Patea is now on the up and up.

People are rediscovering the small seaside town, and the beaches, river and scenery that makes South Taranaki unique.

Could Patea be the answer to New Zealand's increasing lack of affordable housing? At 60km from Whanganui to the south and 27km from Hawera to the north, it's a bit of a commute if you work out of town.

However, most would agree that 45 minutes of South Taranaki countryside beats an hour on Auckland motorways any day.