Messy neighbours, planes overhead: What drops the value of your house?

House prices aren't moving much in many parts of the country — but what could cause the value of your place to drop?

By Susan Edmunds of RNZ

Property experts say there are a few things that can happen to influence a property's value — some within the owner's control and some not.

Property economist Ed McKnight said having neighbours who did not look after their house could be a problem.

"If your neighbour's property looks like a mess — overgrown lawns, rubbish piling up, cars on the front lawn — that could make it harder to get a premium price for your property. It's hard to quantify this in data.

"But buyers tend to pay premium prices for the dream home. If next door makes it seem more like a nightmare, then the price premium will fall."

There has been a townhouse boom around parts of Auckland but work in neighbouring sections can make your house less valuable — at least in the short term.

McKnight said he visited a house in Ōrākei, Auckland, where the owner was grappling with this.

"Just as this owner was trying to sell, the neighbour was bulldozing their house and knocking up a five-storey apartment building. It was hard to get someone to pay a premium price for a property when there's going to be noise and disturbance next door for the following three years.

"The tricky part is that most of this is outside your control. You can have the best-maintained property on the street, but if next door is a disaster, you're wearing some of that cost."

Cotality chief property economist Kelvin Davidson said many people valued privacy and having sunlight.

"Putting townhouses up next door potentially reduces that. But I think it's just the world we're in at the moment, the government is pushing hard on intensification, infill housing."

But Vanessa Williams, a spokesperson for Realestate.co.nz, said in an area with a lot of finished townhouses, having a place with a garden and garage could be worth more.

Recent weather events have drawn more attention to potential flooding, and properties that could be in a flood zone.

About 20% of Auckland buildings are in areas that are prone to floods and it was reported last year that new homes are still being built in flood zones.

Williams said it was something that many buyers should research before they bought a house. A property in a risky area could have a lower value. Some owners might not realise they were affected until they went to sell.

McKnight earlier said a house that was less than 250 metres from a power line could be worth up to 20% less than the same property not near the lines.

"The further away you are the less impact. Once you get over 250m away, there was no discernible difference."

But he said if they were blocking an otherwise nice view, that could cut a property's price by 27%.

McKnight said lamppost cell towers and simple monopole towers made no impact. But armed monopoles could add about a 10% discount for houses very close to them.

Davidson said anywhere that had planes flying closely overhead at regular intervals could face challenges.

But an Airways and Auckland Airport report in 2018 said a new flight path over parts of Auckland did not impact property prices, media reported at the time.

An earlier study in Brisbane said aircraft noise only had a minimal impact on property prices.

Davidson said homes next to correctional facilities could also face a stigma.

A UK survey showed 36% of people would live by a prison but half would expect a discount in price of almost a third to do so.

Apartments near Auckland's Mt Eden Correctional Facility are valued at about $860,000, a similar price to some a few streets away. But in areas where there is less employment, the arrival of a prison can mean more work.

Davidson said problems with sewage ponds, as seen recently in Christchurch, could devalue a property.

Offensive odours have been a problem for the city's eastern suburbs.

Recently, locals complained that it was making them unwell and they had had to stay indoors.

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But it was reported earlier this month that there had not yet been an impact on property values.