Oriental Bay
Beach paradise on the city edge
Overview
This is Wellington’s premier city neighbourhood, where high rise apartments and character mansions enjoy panoramic views of the city and inner harbour. Home to movie stars, successful businesspeople and Wellington’s old-money elite, there’s little of any reasonable size offered on the market here under the $1 million mark. The area is humming on a warm summer day as people come from far and wide to bake themselves on the sandy beach. Predominately the home of the middle aged and retirees, Oriental Bay is also home to a number of young professionals; those who don’t mind paying Wellington’s highest rents to enjoy the easy walk along the promenade to their offices in the city.
Best Suited To
Anyone who wants to live in a highly desirable waterfront locality, and can afford it.
Population Profile
It’s not surprising that Oriental Bay, the most expensive and most desirable suburb in Wellington, has a skewed demographic. That demographic leans markedly toward the 60 plus age group. They are here at more than twice the Wellington average. The suburb is ethnically European (83%), although this is not as high as some other wealthy Wellington suburbs, like Seatoun and Khandallah.
The locals are well educated with a strong representation in the arts and professional fields. Fifty percent of household incomes are in excess of $100,000 per annum. Many who live here earn their money via investments or self-employment, NZ Super or other pensions, all indicating a financially savvy, older age group. Almost 80% of households indicate they are couples without children, while many homes are fully owned rather than mortgaged.
The secondary demographic to Oriental Bay is upwardly-mobile young workforce; your lawyers, accountants and anyone else where status is attached to where you might live. You might pay a lot of rent to be here, but you can be sure you’re friends will come visit.
Typical Homes
Seventy percent of residents in Oriental Bay live in apartments or townhouses. High rise towers are slowly taking over the street as demand for accommodation grows here. There are a wide variety of apartment sizes and styles available, from compact one bedroom units through to large, luxury penthouses. Apartment building began here in the 1930’s and there are a number of attractive, historical blocks constructed in this era. There are houses too, both on the waterfront and on the steep hillsides overlooking the bay. But you’ll need a small fortune to buy one, if they ever come available.
Amenities
Oriental Bay is awash with people on sunny days, so the place is a hot spot for cafes, restaurants and ice cream stores. Beach Babylon is perhaps the most popular sit-in café, set directly across from the beach area. Boat Café is located in an old tug boat which is moored behind Freyberg swimming pool, offering a day time café and evening restaurant. Oriental Bay Store is a long serving convenience store, set across from the band rotunda.
There are no schools in Oriental Bay. Clyde Quay School in Mt Victoria has an enrolment zone that includes the western portion of Oriental Parade, while Roseneath School covers the rest of the suburb. Secondary schools are located to the south or west including Wellington College, Wellington East Girls College and Wellington High School.
The sandy beach is the main attraction here. The beach can be heaving with people on the warmest of summer days, but thankfully there’s plenty of room to spread yourself out on any other day of the year. The water is generally safe for swimming and it’s a popular pastime to swim out to the floating timber platform, moored in the bay over summer. Look out for the Carter Fountain too; it’s wonderfully lit at night. Fishing, cycling, rollerblading, or just people watching are all popular activities along the wide promenade. The Southern Walkway commences from the eastern end of Oriental Parade. The first portion is the steepest of the entire walk (11 kilometres in total to Island Bay) but it’s worth completing for the panoramic views you get over the city and inner harbour.
Real Estate Trends
It’s next to impossible to pick up anything here for under $750,000. What you get for that will be very small. Townhouses in Oriental Bay start at about the $1.2 million mark and anything less than $1.2 million is likely to be quite small. Choices become greater from about $1.5 million. Penthouse apartments (top floor) are likely to achieve prices in excess of $2 million.
Best Streets
Oriental Parade is where you want to be for waterfront action. Bayview Terrace is a small, gated cul-de-sac situated above Oriental Bay, featuring large cedar homes built in the 1980’s.
House Prices
Small, older-style apartment, limited if any views, from $700,000.
Small, renovated apartment, two bedrooms, city views, from $1 million.
Spacious apartment, newer building, city views, from $1.8 million.
Travel Times
Central city – driving, 5 minutes non-peak, up to 15 minutes peak.
Airport – driving, 10 minutes non-peak.
Hutt Valley – driving, 20 minutes non-peak.
Weather
Blessed with a wide north and west aspect, Oriental Bay is well known for its fabulous direct sunlight. The very late sun is best captured by the eastern end of The Parade, away from St Gerrard’s Monastery where the hillside here creates some shading effect.