Living in Atawhai: rents, schools, census and property titles
The 1,513 live property titles in Atawhai, Nelson City are almost all freehold (92%), as recorded by LINZ on 30 September 2026. Cross-lease titles number 38 (2.5%), well below the national share of 8.7%.
- Cross-lease titles
- 38
- Share of live titles
- 2.5%
- Live titles in total
- 1,513
- Nelson City share
- 5.3%
- New Zealand share
- 8.7%
- Rank by share in Nelson City
- 13 of 15
- Rank by share in New Zealand
- joint 596 of 644
Atawhai at a glance
Where Atawhai differs most from suburbs across New Zealand: median age (higher than 94% of NZ suburbs); median slope under buildings (higher than 93% of NZ suburbs); cross-lease share of titles (lower than 92% of NZ suburbs).
Higher or lower is not better or worse. Sources and limits
Start here
What the data tells you
Recorded facts
- Atawhai is listed under Nelson City.
- 1,513 live titles are recorded here, including 38 cross-lease titles (2.5%).
- The page includes 2023 Census context for the statistical area that represents this suburb.
- The page includes MBIE new-tenancy rent figures for April–June 2026.
Contextual observations
- Cross-lease titles make up 2.5% of the recorded title mix. That describes the suburb, not any particular home.
- Unit titles account for 0.1% of recorded titles, so title structure can vary within the suburb.
- Coast distance is a suburb-level map measure, not a flood or hazard assessment.
Questions worth investigating
- For any cross-lease property you consider, do the current title, flats plan and lease match what is built today?
- What do the LIM, council property file and a suitable inspection add for the specific address?
No data held for this suburb
- Mapped public-transport context is not available for this suburb.
Title mix in Atawhai
| Title type | Live titles | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Freehold | 1,394 | 92.1% |
| Cross lease | 38 | 2.5% |
| Unit title | 2 | 0.1% |
| Leasehold | 77 | 5.1% |
| Other record types | 2 | 0.1% |
| Total | 1,513 | 100% |
Counts are titles, not homes; the register can lag conversions, so check the certificate of title. Sources and limits
How Atawhai compares
Nationally, 8.7% of live titles are cross-lease; Atawhai is well below the national share (8.7%).
Across Nelson City as a whole, the share is 5.3%; Atawhai is well below the overall Nelson City share (5.3%).
Its cross-lease share is 3rd lowest of 15 in Nelson City (among suburbs with an indexed page on this site).
How cross-leases in Atawhai are set up
Carports appear in fewer leases (5% of schemes, against 13% nationally).
More schemes have four or more flats on one section (25%, against 11% nationally).
Fewer schemes refer to more than one flats plan (25%, against 36% nationally), usually because a plan was redrawn.
| Scheme structure | Atawhai | Nelson City | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cross-lease schemes (shared sections) | 20 | 795 | 87,651 |
| Two-flat schemes | 65.0% | 69.4% | 76.2% |
| Three-flat schemes | 10.0% | 15.3% | 12.2% |
| Four or more flats | 25.0% | 14.6% | 11.4% |
| Typical section size (from the titles, not a survey) | 842 m² | 840 m² | 908 m² |
| Typical land per flat | 421 m² | 381 m² | 408 m² |
| Schemes with a garage written into a lease | 25.0% | 27.0% | 28.4% |
| Schemes with a carport in a lease | 5.0% | 8.9% | 13.3% |
| Schemes with a separate exclusive-use area | 0.0% | 1.9% | 4.5% |
| Schemes referring to more than one flats plan (usually redrawn; not by itself a problem) | 25.0% | 24.4% | 35.6% |
| Median year of earliest current title | 1992 | 1991 | 1988 |
| Two-flat schemes on 700 m² or more | 9 | 379 | 54,978 |
Unit titles and leasehold in Atawhai
77 titles (5.1%) are leasehold, well above the national share (1.2%).
Most stated terms have more than 50 years to run.
Stated lease terms, as at 30 September 2026:
| Stated lease term | Titles |
|---|---|
| Stated term has ended | 0 |
| Under 10 years left | 0 |
| 10 to 50 years left | 0 |
| More than 50 years left | 77 |
| Term mentions renewal (including perpetually renewable) | 0 |
| Term not stated or not readable | 0 |
New titles in Atawhai since 2020
164 of Atawhai's current titles (11%) were first issued since 2020, above Nelson City's suburbs with new-title figures taken together (8%) and slightly below New Zealand (12%).
That rate is joint 2nd highest of 13 in Nelson City.
| Title type | Since 2020 | Since 2023 |
|---|---|---|
| Freehold | 161 | 80 |
| Unit title | 0 | 0 |
| Cross-lease | 3 | 0 |
| Leasehold | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 0 | 0 |
New titles include cross-leases converted to freehold and titles re-issued; they are not a count of new homes. Sources and limits
The lie of the land in Atawhai
The typical building in Atawhai stands on ground sloping 8.4° (read on an 8 m grid, so short steep banks may be understated).
About 15% of its 1,536 measured buildings stand on ground of 15° or more.
The land rises from about 0 m to 458 m, and 72% of all of it, including reserves and gullies, is 15° or steeper.
Slope is not a measure of ground stability. Sources and limits
Distance to the coast from Atawhai
25% of Atawhai's titles are within 200 m of the sea or harbour edge, 74% within 500 m and 97% within 1 km. The typical title is 330 m away.
Measured in a straight line from the centre of each title's land to the coastline on LINZ's 1:50k topographic map, which follows harbours and estuaries as well as the open coast; lakes and rivers are not included. Distance says nothing about beach access, views or exposure to coastal hazards; council hazard maps and the LIM describe those.
Who lives around Atawhai: 2023 Census
About 100% of Atawhai's titles are in the census area Atawhai (a Stats NZ statistical area), so these figures describe that area, not Atawhai exactly.
Fewer households have no car in Atawhai than across Nelson City: 2.4% against 5.6%.
Fewer workers walk or cycle to work in Atawhai than across Nelson City: 7.7% against 14.6%.
Fewer people live alone in Atawhai than across Nelson City: 20.4% against 27.1%.
| Measure | Atawhai | Nelson City whole council |
|---|---|---|
| Usual residents | 2,877 | 52,584 |
| Change since 2018 | +3.1% | +3.3% |
| Change since 2013 | +12.6% | +13.2% |
| Median age | 51.1 | 44 |
| Households | 1,167 | 20,577 |
| Own or part-own their home (including family trusts) | 81.0% | 71.2% |
| Not owned and not in a family trust (mostly renting) | 19.3% | 28.8% |
| Median household income | $94,000 | $81,800 |
| Median weekly rent, renting households | $456 | $430 |
| Dwellings unoccupied on census night | 6.1% | 7.4% |
| Ages | ||
| Under 15 | 14.5% | 16.6% |
| 15 to 29 | 12.2% | 15.6% |
| 30 to 64 | 47.2% | 46.2% |
| 65 and over | 26.2% | 21.6% |
| Where people came from | ||
| Born overseas | 29.9% | 26.5% |
| Of those born overseas, arrived in the last 5 years | 13.7% | 22.9% |
| Lived elsewhere in New Zealand 5 years ago (of all residents, including children born since) | 33.8% | 43.0% |
| Lived overseas 5 years ago (of all residents) | 5.5% | 5.0% |
| Moved here in the last year (of all residents) | 14.9% | 18.2% |
| Work and study (people 15 and over) | ||
| Bachelor degree or higher | 35.4% | 26.8% |
| Employed full-time | 43.4% | 47.1% |
| Unemployed (share of everyone 15 and over, not the unemployment rate) | 1.6% | 2.2% |
| Managers and professionals (of those employed) | 48.7% | 42.2% |
| Median personal income | $41,900 | $38,800 |
| Getting to work (of those employed) | ||
| Work from home | 19.4% | 14.8% |
| Car, truck or van | 70.7% | 67.5% |
| Bus, train or ferry | 0.8% | 1.1% |
| Walk or cycle | 7.7% | 14.6% |
| Households and families | ||
| One-person households | 20.4% | 27.1% |
| Average people per household | 2.4 | 2.4 |
| Households with no motor vehicle | 2.4% | 5.6% |
| Crowded households (need one or more extra bedrooms) | 2.6% | 4.1% |
| Couples with children (of families) | 35.2% | 36.4% |
| Couples without children | 55.4% | 48.1% |
| One-parent families | 9.1% | 15.5% |
| Homes | ||
| Separate (stand-alone) houses | 91.1% | 78.4% |
| Average bedrooms | 3.2 | 2.9 |
| Heated with a heat pump | 75.1% | 74.4% |
| Damp, always or sometimes | 9.9% | 14.0% |
| Mould over A4 size, always or sometimes | 6.9% | 9.6% |
Rents around Atawhai
New tenancies in Atawhai in the April–June 2026 quarter had a median rent of $610 a week (up 2.0% on a year earlier). That is slightly above the typical suburb in Nelson City ($555), and close to the national median ($600); 3rd highest of 12 in Nelson City.
| April–June 2026 | Atawhai | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Median weekly rent, new tenancies | $610 | $600 |
| Middle half of rents | $521–$654 | $490–$700 |
| Change in median on a year earlier | +2.0% | +0.2% |
| Bonds lodged in the quarter | 18 | 40,827 |
Schools and hospitals near Atawhai
No school site lies inside Atawhai's boundary; the nearest is Clifton Terrace School, 2.9 km away in a straight line.
- Nearest school: Clifton Terrace School (2.9 km)
- Nearest secondary school: Nelson College For Girls (4.7 km)
- Nearest public general hospital: Nelson Hospital (5.8 km)
School enrolment zones in Atawhai: a guide
The largest primary-school zone share of Atawhai's titles is in Clifton Terrace School's home zone (all or nearly all).
- Clifton Terrace School (primary, Years 1–6): all or nearly all titles
A guide only: check the school's own zone map for any address. Zones as at 14 July 2026. Sources and limits
Places of worship near Atawhai
OpenStreetMap maps 1 place of worship inside Atawhai (1 Christian).
Nearest mapped place of each tradition within 10 km:
- Christian: Garin Memorial Chapel, 1.8 km away
- Muslim: Nelson Islamic Cultural Society (NICS), 4.3 km away
Listed as facilities for access; not an indicator of who lives here. Sources and limits
Other suburbs in Nelson City with many cross-leases
- Stoke: 474 cross-lease titles (6.3%)
- Tāhunanui: 257 cross-lease titles (12.4%)
- Nelson South: 204 cross-lease titles (8.4%)
- The Wood: 134 cross-lease titles (7.9%)
- Toi Toi: 117 cross-lease titles (11.6%)
- Washington Valley: 100 cross-lease titles (11.9%)
- Richmond: 94 cross-lease titles (1.1%)
- Annesbrook: 76 cross-lease titles (11.4%)
Suburbs like Atawhai
The closest match on the measures on this site is Wakatu in Nelson City, nearest on schools, household income, unit-title share. Closeness is arithmetic, not a rating. Sources and limits
| Suburb | Council | Cross-lease share of titles | Median weekly rent, new tenancies | Median age | Closest on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wakatu | Nelson City | 8.7% | $568 | 49.7 | schools, household income, unit-title share |
| Enner Glynn | Nelson City | 4.7% | $590 | 42.1 | commuting by public transport, stand-alone houses, population change |
| Diamond Harbour | Christchurch City | 3.6% | No data | 54.1 | distance to the coast, born overseas, unit-title share |
| Mount Pleasant, Christchurch City | Christchurch City | 9.0% | $700 | 49.4 | distance to the coast, land per flat, stand-alone houses |
| Heathcote Valley | Christchurch City | 7.6% | No data | 47.7 | home ownership, distance to the coast, commuting on foot or by bike |
Questions
What is the rent in Atawhai?
New tenancies in the Atawhai rent area had a median rent of $610 a week in the April–June 2026 quarter (MBIE bond data, all dwelling types). These are rents agreed for new tenancies, not asking rents. The middle half of those rents ran from $521 to $654.
What schools are in Atawhai?
No school site lies inside Atawhai's boundary. The nearest school is Clifton Terrace School (2.9 km in a straight line). Being near a school does not mean being in its zone.