House prices are notoriously high in Auckland Grammar zone. Photo: RNZ Insight/Teresa Cowie
When Charlotte Smith and her husband, Mark, were planning to move to New Zealand, finding a home in a good school zone was important.
They settled on their house in Maunu, Whangārei, because of the proximity to Maunu School.
"It was pretty normal in the UK to be zoned for primary schools and heaps more expensive to live in zone."
She said they looked for houses in two school zones while planning their move - Maunu and Hurupaki School.
"Price wise it was more than other areas we looked at but all the good school zone areas seemed to be that way. We had an offer on a place in Kamo as we were keen on Hurupaki but we ended up getting gazumped by someone so in-zone homes are definitely in demand."
She said when they recently sold their home to move on, lots of people at the open home were looking for in-zone houses.
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New data from Realestate.co.nz shows a similar trend in other parts of the country, too.
It said that people who wanted houses in a top school zone could expect to pay more for it.
Auckland's Epsom Girls' Grammar was top of the list, with zone homes commanding an average asking price of $2,451,406, compared to out of zone properties which fetched an average asking price of $1,291,619, it said.
Out of zone was calculated based on properties that were within five kilometres of the school but not in zone.
Auckland Grammar followed with in-zone homes fetching an average $534,705 more than out-of-zone listings.
Vanessa Williams, spokesperson for realestate.co.nz, says properties in school zones had always been desirable.
"This data shows just how valuable a school zone address can be. Take Auckland Grammar for example where buyers can be in zone on one side of a street but not the other. For many Kiwis, securing the right education pathway is a top priority, and that demand is clearly reflected in property prices. These homes not only attract strong buyer interest but also tend to hold their value over time."
In-zone for Auckland Grammar School was a sought-after area. (File photo) Photo: RNZ Insight/Teresa Cowie
In Christchurch, Christchurch Boys' High added a 70.2 percent premium.
"Buyers are clearly willing to pay a significant premium to be in zone for Christchurch's sought-after schools, reflecting both the reputation of these schools and the long-term appeal of the surrounding neighbourhoods," Williams said.
In Hamilton, Hillcrest High School showed a similar trend, with a more than 50 percent difference in average asking price between in zone and out of zone properties.
Homes in zone averaged $1,176, 556 compared to $755,102 for those out of zone. Meanwhile, minimal difference was recorded for homes in and out of zone for Hamilton Girls' and Hamilton Boys' High Schools.
In the capital, Onslow College had the greatest difference in average asking prices between in zone and out of zone properties. A home in zone for the college fetched an average asking price of $997,348, more than 20 percent higher than a home out of zone, $812,560.
But Kelvin Davidson, chief property economist at Corelogic, said it was often the case that the desirable school zones were in parts of cities that might have been desirable anyway, such as central locations.
"It's a bit chicken and egg, does a good school make it a good area, and desirable and drive prices up, or was it desirable and people wanted to live there and it happens to have a good school?"
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