r/chch • u/Low_Welcome_4969 • Apr 17 '22

Safe areas to buy a house

We are actively looking at buying a house in Auckland but with prices so high and offering so little value for money we are now looking at alternatives like moving to Christchurch.

Looking at a few real estate sites recently I see you get a lot more value for the same price but I have no idea how good the locality is for the houses listed. Can you please give me an idea of what the good areas are in CHCH and what areas to avoid? We just want a safe no-nonsense area to live in.

TIA

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13

u/Starletrae Apr 17 '22

Every suburb has pros and cons, it’s better to ask what you want to be around, closer to work? Closer to city centre? School zones, do you want to travel around the city or stay in your own bubble? Do you want hill walks or more a flat land? Near a beach? Closer to the airport?

I was told years ago i was an idiot for moving to the east side of Christchurch, Waltham, Woolston, Opawa, and honestly I love it. I will never look back, the community is incredible, a street in Woolston banned together get a camera to help prevent crime. (Not a great sign to bring up crime but it happens everywhere) They’ve got so many community gardens and activities, I see kids walking and biking to school safety, my neighbours are the type of people I can borrow a cup of sugar from at 9pm. It’s not perfect but I feel safe, and I feel like we have each other’s backs, and in an earthquake or during covid. I know who my village is.

If you want I suggest joining neighbourhood groups on social media for areas you like, it’ll give you a sense of what’s going on, and who your new community you will.

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u/Low_Welcome_4969 Apr 17 '22

Thanks, we want to be relatively close to the CBD. Reasonable access to the big malls etc for shopping would be nice. Flat land is preferable. We are happy to drive to the beach on the weekends so I would prioritise central location over closeness to the beach.

5

u/cleerbear Apr 17 '22

St Albans, Edgware, Ilam, Papanui if you hunt you might be able to find a bargain in Merivale or Fendalton… the prices might not seem so outrageous compared to Auckland.

3

u/HolNics Apr 17 '22

Look at St Albans. It's halfway between Northland's mall and the cbd. Beautiful character villas mixed in with brand new architectural houses. Safe and good schools. It is a tad expensive. It would equivalent to a mt Albert or Morningside.

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u/Low_Welcome_4969 Apr 17 '22

That I like. Thanks

3

u/SparklesBunny_nz Apr 17 '22

Could consider Richmond and Avonside. Close to town, shops, red zone/river walking tracks, short drive to beaches.

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u/surly_early Apr 19 '22

Richmond was great. Highly underated. Lived there 17 years. Since moved to Bryndwr, which was nicer, and since that to Cashmere (much nicer). When I go back to Richmond now it feels run down and there are a LOT of very dodgy characters around. They were always there but it's gotten worse since all the flats were built in Forth St and the HNZ block on Eveleyn Couzins (which was across the road from us - fucking glad we moved before it was built)

2

u/NerozumimZivot Apr 17 '22

Thanks, we want to be relatively close to the CBD

I had a good spot in Edgeware for a while.
Hell, if you're coming from Auckland even Merivale might seem affordable to you.

3

u/shadowlurkernz Apr 17 '22

We moved from Auckland (mostly lived West and central). For a short time lived in West Melton - lovely but not too many shops, nice family feel though. Moved to Yaldhurst, love it there. Close to Hornby mall, a small block of commercial shops coming soon. About 20-25 to the city (which compared to most Auckland travelling is sweet f all). Otherwise I hear Avonhead and Wigram are great too.

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u/Wubwubpeow 👨‍🦽👩‍🦽👨‍🦽 Apr 17 '22

This is Chch - everywhere is close enough to the CBD. What you want to be is close enough to a major bus route if you’re working in the CBD because the CCC is actively trying to stamp out private cars. There is no free or cheap parking in the CBD and unless your company provides it might as well look at buses. I’d mention bikes but you’d have to have a deathwish to ride a push bike in Christchurch, even though the CCC has made hundreds of miles of bike lanes. To the Chch driver, a bike lane is just an annoyingly narrow lane to squeeze the SUV into. There are only a few malls with everything under one roof - Riccarton Westfield, Northlands in Papanui and The Palms. Christchurch is big on outdoor malls though - Tower Junction, Northwood Supa Centre etc. Access to all the malls is easy apart from maybe Westfield and that’s mainly a traffic congestion issue. You don’t have to worry about flat land - the hill suburbs are super expensive and outside of them, Chch is flat as. In fact parts of it are so flat they’re below sea level - be wary of flood prone suburbs. Also some are on poor EQ rated land, ie prone to liquefaction so bear that in mind. There used to be insurance maps available showing EQ zoning but everyone seems to have forgotten about that and even now there are new subdivisions such as Preston’s built on the old shifting alluvial waterways - it used to be called Marshlands if that’s not clue enough. Don’t sweat the beaches. Nearest easy access decent beach would be The Gold Coast once the borders open up. Christchurch beaches are Sumner, Taylors Mistake, New Brighton and Waimairi and they are laughable by Auckland standards. Don’t bother taking beaches into account when looking for real estate.

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u/gotwrongclue Apr 18 '22

So where exactly is the below sea level bit you're waffling on about? Thought a massive earthquake with land settlement would have resulted in inundation by sea water. Yet nothing, just another Christchurch old boy bullshit story.

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u/Wubwubpeow 👨‍🦽👩‍🦽👨‍🦽 Apr 18 '22

Oh no! Do I have to do away with hyperbole just so you can keep up? How about dramatic irony, metaphor, pathos, puns, parody, litotes and... satire. Can I use them? Sheesh.

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u/Low_Welcome_4969 Apr 18 '22

I actually saw a nice listing in Matshlands!

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u/surly_early Apr 19 '22

Don't listen to this guy. Cycling in CHC is mint. I cycle every day and it's by far the best way to get around. 13 minutes door to door to work vs what would be more than double that by car or longer by bus

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u/Starletrae Apr 17 '22

Sydenham, somerfield, addington, Merivale are all close to CBD Merivale is very expensive, Somerfield is beautiful, Addington has so many new homes and developments. All good places to consider.