Lower North Island Building Boom A Windfall For Builders And Tradies

With building consents up 20% on the previous year New Zealand based building franchise Stonewood Homes is set to capitalise on the boom looking to secure 5-10 new franchise locations to manage growth over the next few years.

Owner John Chow said while recent population predictions showed that about half of New Zealand’s population growth in the next 30 years would likely be in Auckland, there were smaller regions in the North Island that builders were overlooking.

“Our franchisees in neighbouring areas are seeing a spike in enquiries from people wanting to build new homes in Gisborne, New Plymouth and Palmerston North, as well as in Hamilton and Waikato, all areas where we have vacant territories” Mr Chow said. “The demand is there and is being driven by the critical shortage of housing stock. There is a strong opportunity for builders to cash in on the building boom.”

The most recent NZ Property Report from realestate.co.nz showed that housing stock was down a whopping 36% in Waikato in May, compared with the same time last year. At the same time, Gisborne recorded a 7.5% increase in property asking prices in May, compared with the month prior.

“It really is the perfect storm, we’ve got a dire shortage of houses on the market coupled with record asking prices and this is pushing people to the new home market,” Mr Chow said. “We know that the ability to get the home that they really want has always been a big influencer for people who decide to build new homes, but now we’ve got other factors in play, like price certainty.”

Mr Chow said while the building industry had done it tough with lockdowns and the associated new requirements for health and safety on building sites, as well as a shortage of materials, the industry was bouncing back and the current housing market provided a unique opportunity for builders and tradies looking to upscale their operations.

“We currently have 19 Stonewood Homes franchises across New Zealand, with 10 on the North Island,” he said. “For tradies or builders looking to expand their business in the current boom, the larger franchised building companies make a lot of sense, as the systems and procedures are already in place, and they can hit the ground running.

“We are getting a lot of enquiries already from the region, but we don’t have the builders to pass it onto yet. There is immense opportunity for builders ready to take the next step and grow their business.”

Mr Chow said there were opportunities open in Hamilton, Waikato, Gisborne, New Plymouth and Palmerston North. https://stonewood.co.nz/franchise-opportunities/

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