38 | REGIONAL Tall Poppy Central Otago Earthworks better than you imagined! 286 Earnscleugh Rd Alexandra P 027 554 9166 E chappycontracting@gmail.com T T Alexia Anderson Riding the wave in Central Otago Tall Poppy Central Otago has been recognised as the company’s top national franchise for the past three years. “When new listings come on, it goes out to all the buyers in New Zealand that are looking in our area, automatically, overnight, on an email.” A wave of growth that began in Queenstown and Wānaka before sweeping through Cromwell is now reaching lexandra and Clyde, where new subdivisions are expected to unlock hundreds of sections after years of limited land supply. For Peter Hishon, the owner of Tall Poppy Central Otago, the release of new subdivisions marks the beginning of the district’s next phase. “There’s going to be a hell of a lot of building activity, which we haven’t seen down here for a number of years because there’s been nowhere to build, other than lifestyle blocks,” Peter says. He expects the impact to extend well beyond new homes. “If there’s another 500 new houses in the next three or four years, there’s 500 new families we’re going to be dealing with in the next 10 years,” he says. “It’s a snowball effect. The more people that come here, the more people we need.” While locals continue to upsize and downsize, Peter says his buyer pool is broadening. Long-time interest from Otago and Southland retirees has been added to by buyers from Canterbury, the North Island, and New Zealanders returning from Australia, drawn by the outdoors and keen to leave bigger centres behind. “Now we’re getting an influx of people from everywhere,” he says. “Every customer is coming from different locations.” Peter also sees a downstream effect from Queenstown and Wānaka, with buyers increasingly looking to Central Otago as a more affordable place to put down roots. He says Alexandra’s median house value is in the mid-to-high $700,000 range, well below the Southern Lakes District. That combination of lifestyle, affordability and population growth has helped the district avoid the slowdown seen elsewhere, he says. After buying the Tall Poppy franchise eight years ago, Peter has built a business that has been recognised as the company’s top national franchise for the past three years. He puts the franchise’s market share of the Cromwell, Alexandra and Clyde market at close to 30%, while nine of his agents rank in the company’s national top 20 – a tally that spans both Central Otago, and Wānaka, where he runs a separate franchise. Peter says technology has removed many of the advantages once held by larger brands. “One good agent in New Zealand, if they just had their own brand, now has the same buyer reach as any other company in the country,” he says. A partnership with realestate.co.nz now gives clients the option to make an offer online, on top of automated buyer-matching that alerts prospective buyers the moment a new listing appears. “When new listings come on, it goes out to all the buyers in New Zealand that are looking in our area, automatically, overnight, on an email,” Peter says. Digital marketing has also grown to be more targeted, following prospective buyers as they browse. “If you have a wee nosy on a listing, it’ll retarget you in a couple of weeks,” he says. Before moving into real estate, Peter spent decades as a livestock broker, where relationships mattered as much as the deal itself. “Some of the grounding I got in the early days of my livestock game, I still think that stands me in good stead with real estate. It’s about knowing your clients’ kids and their dogs and their cats and building those relationships.” Helping people through one of the biggest financial decisions of their lives still comes down to trust, he says. “You’re dealing with people’s major asset. There’s a hell of a lot of trust involved.” People are looking to Central Otago as a more affordable place to put down roots.
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