Useful Websites
These government sites are incredibly helpful sources of information.
The government / local council has really useful websites that are invaluable for your property search. In fact these are what I immediately look at whenever I see a property I have any interest in. Save these for future reference.
Government Websites
School Zones
The school zone map from the Ministry of Education gives you an easy map to see what zones your property is located within for schooling. This will play an important role if you have children as what school they go to, especially in the public school system, has a major influence on their childhood.
Auckland Flood Viewer
Due to the 2022 Auckland Floods, the council has created a separate map view of flood risk properties. My advice is if the property is on or very close to a flood plain, etc – you need to be careful.
Auckland Council GIS Viewer
https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/geospatial/geomaps/Pages/default.aspx
The Auckland Council GIS viewer is a geomapping tool that lets you see all sorts of information about the Auckland region and properties specifically. Once you understand the tool, you can see:
1. Topography
2. Zoning (e.g. special character areas)
3. Nearby stormwater and wastewater
Other things, like power lines... (pictured)
Auckland Council Unitary Plan Viewer
https://unitaryplanmaps.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/upviewer/
The Auckland council unitary plan viewer lets you see the unitary plan zone for the property. This will have a major influence on the market price, regardless of what the CV may say. It also indicates the future subdivision potential of the property.
Housing NZ / Kianga Ora / Govt property map
https://linz.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=8501fe601f7648718d0e3a2f3f1ed216
This LINZ map shows all government / crown owned properties in New Zealand. More interestingly, it shows the locations of all Housing New Zealand properties as well. This can be helpful if proximity to state owned housing is important or a cause of concern for you.
It also gives you a good understanding of government land, in case you are buying next to a crown asset that may need expansion in the future (you don't want a Public Works Act 1981 letter trust me).
Other Websites
Trademe Property
Trademe Property is my go-to tool to find properties, especially because of their easy to use UI. However not all vendors list on this site given the high fees.
Oneroof
https://www.oneroof.co.nz/estimate
Oneroof will tell you the CV, and past sales history for the property in one place. Ignore the estimates it provides as it’s usually wildly inaccurate, but use it for the zoning and other information it provides under one roof.
Homes.co.nz
Homes.co.nz offers the same information as most of the other sites, but can be a better UI. Be careful about the valuations as agents can update these. The flip side is you can kind of get a feel for what they’ve promised the vendor.
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