Living in Washington Valley: rents, schools, census and property titles
The 843 live property titles in Washington Valley, Nelson City are almost all freehold (82%), as recorded by LINZ on 30 September 2026. Cross-lease titles number 100 (11.9%), above the national share of 8.7%.
Washington Valley cross-lease titles
- Cross-lease titles
- 100
- Share of live titles
- 11.9%
- Live titles in total
- 843
- Nelson City share
- 5.3%
- New Zealand share
- 8.7%
- Rank by share in Nelson City
- 3 of 15
- Rank by share in New Zealand
- joint 277 of 644
Washington Valley at a glance
Where Washington Valley differs most from suburbs across New Zealand: median slope under buildings (higher than 99% of NZ suburbs).
Higher or lower is not better or worse. Sources and limits
Start here
What the data tells you
Recorded facts
- Washington Valley is listed under Nelson City.
- 843 live titles are recorded here, including 100 cross-lease titles (11.9%).
- 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 11.9% of the recorded title mix. That describes the suburb, not any particular home.
- 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 Washington Valley
| Title type | Live titles | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Freehold | 693 | 82.2% |
| Cross lease | 100 | 11.9% |
| Unit title | 0 | 0.0% |
| Leasehold | 50 | 5.9% |
| Other record types | 0 | 0.0% |
| Total | 843 | 100% |
Counts are titles, not homes; the register can lag conversions, so check the certificate of title. Sources and limits
How Washington Valley compares
Nationally, 8.7% of live titles are cross-lease; Washington Valley is higher than the national share (8.7%).
Across Nelson City as a whole, the share is 5.3%; Washington Valley is about 2.2 times the overall Nelson City share (5.3%).
Its cross-lease share is 3rd highest of 15 in Nelson City (among suburbs with an indexed page on this site).
How cross-leases in Washington Valley are set up
Carports appear in fewer leases (3% of schemes, against 13% nationally).
Fewer leases include a garage (11% of schemes, against 28% nationally).
More schemes have four or more flats on one section (16%, against 11% nationally), up to 8.
| Scheme structure | Washington Valley | Nelson City | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cross-lease schemes (shared sections) | 38 | 795 | 87,651 |
| Two-flat schemes | 68.4% | 69.4% | 76.2% |
| Three-flat schemes | 15.8% | 15.3% | 12.2% |
| Four or more flats | 15.8% | 14.6% | 11.4% |
| Typical section size (from the titles, not a survey) | 1,000 m² | 840 m² | 908 m² |
| Typical land per flat | 416 m² | 381 m² | 408 m² |
| Schemes with a garage written into a lease | 10.5% | 27.0% | 28.4% |
| Schemes with a carport in a lease | 2.6% | 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) | 31.6% | 24.4% | 35.6% |
| Median year of earliest current title | 1990 | 1991 | 1988 |
| Two-flat schemes on 700 m² or more | 20 | 379 | 54,978 |
Unit titles and leasehold in Washington Valley
50 titles (5.9%) 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 | 50 |
| Term mentions renewal (including perpetually renewable) | 0 |
| Term not stated or not readable | 0 |
The lie of the land in Washington Valley
The typical building in Washington Valley stands on ground sloping 13.7° (read on an 8 m grid, so short steep banks may be understated), the steepest of 15 in Nelson City.
About 42% of its 938 measured buildings stand on ground of 15° or more.
Slope is not a measure of ground stability. Sources and limits
Distance to the coast from Washington Valley
0% of Washington Valley's titles are within 200 m of the sea or harbour edge, 17% within 500 m and 96% within 1 km. The typical title is 730 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 Washington Valley: 2023 Census
About 82% of Washington Valley's titles are in the census area Washington (a Stats NZ statistical area), so these figures describe that area, not Washington Valley exactly.
Fewer residents are 65 or over in Washington than across Nelson City: 12.1% against 21.6%.
People are younger (median age) in Washington than across Nelson City: 35.2 against 44.
Fewer people live alone in Washington than across Nelson City: 21.9% against 27.1%.
| Measure | Washington | Britannia | Nelson City whole council |
|---|---|---|---|
| Usual residents | 2,826 | 1,722 | 52,584 |
| Change since 2018 | −0.7% | −2.5% | +3.3% |
| Change since 2013 | +14.5% | +4.4% | +13.2% |
| Median age | 35.2 | 46 | 44 |
| Households | 1,020 | 720 | 20,577 |
| Own or part-own their home (including family trusts) | 64.1% | 72.9% | 71.2% |
| Not owned and not in a family trust (mostly renting) | 35.9% | 27.5% | 28.8% |
| Median household income | $88,200 | $87,700 | $81,800 |
| Median weekly rent, renting households | $420 | $460 | $430 |
| Dwellings unoccupied on census night | 7.5% | 15.9% | 7.4% |
| Ages | |||
| Under 15 | 19.4% | 16.2% | 16.6% |
| 15 to 29 | 21.3% | 14.8% | 15.6% |
| 30 to 64 | 47.2% | 45.8% | 46.2% |
| 65 and over | 12.1% | 23.2% | 21.6% |
| Where people came from | |||
| Born overseas | 32.5% | 31.6% | 26.5% |
| Of those born overseas, arrived in the last 5 years | 26.7% | 26.1% | 22.9% |
| Lived elsewhere in New Zealand 5 years ago (of all residents, including children born since) | 46.1% | 39.3% | 43.0% |
| Lived overseas 5 years ago (of all residents) | 5.4% | 6.2% | 5.0% |
| Moved here in the last year (of all residents) | 20.6% | 17.4% | 18.2% |
| Work and study (people 15 and over) | |||
| Bachelor degree or higher | 27.2% | 38.9% | 26.8% |
| Employed full-time | 50.2% | 47.0% | 47.1% |
| Unemployed (share of everyone 15 and over, not the unemployment rate) | 2.9% | 2.1% | 2.2% |
| Managers and professionals (of those employed) | 36.8% | 48.2% | 42.2% |
| Median personal income | $39,800 | $44,800 | $38,800 |
| Getting to work (of those employed) | |||
| Work from home | 13.8% | 20.2% | 14.8% |
| Car, truck or van | 71.3% | 60.3% | 67.5% |
| Bus, train or ferry | 0.6% | 0.7% | 1.1% |
| Walk or cycle | 12.1% | 17.9% | 14.6% |
| Households and families | |||
| One-person households | 21.9% | 28.9% | 27.1% |
| Average people per household | 2.7 | 2.3 | 2.4 |
| Households with no motor vehicle | 5.1% | 4.4% | 5.6% |
| Crowded households (need one or more extra bedrooms) | 7.6% | 4.3% | 4.1% |
| Couples with children (of families) | 38.0% | 29.3% | 36.4% |
| Couples without children | 39.2% | 56.7% | 48.1% |
| One-parent families | 22.4% | 14.0% | 15.5% |
| Homes | |||
| Separate (stand-alone) houses | 85.1% | 82.5% | 78.4% |
| Average bedrooms | 3 | 2.9 | 2.9 |
| Heated with a heat pump | 69.7% | 75.2% | 74.4% |
| Damp, always or sometimes | 25.9% | 15.3% | 14.0% |
| Mould over A4 size, always or sometimes | 15.2% | 9.2% | 9.6% |
Rents around Washington Valley
New tenancies in Washington in the April–June 2026 quarter had a median rent of $560 a week (up 7.7% on a year earlier). That is close to the typical suburb in Nelson City ($555), and close to the national median ($600).
| April–June 2026 | Washington | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Median weekly rent, new tenancies | $560 | $600 |
| Middle half of rents | $495–$640 | $490–$700 |
| Change in median on a year earlier | +7.7% | +0.2% |
| Bonds lodged in the quarter | 27 | 40,827 |
Schools and hospitals near Washington Valley
No school site lies inside Washington Valley's boundary; the nearest is Auckland Point School, 1.0 km away in a straight line.
- Nearest school: Auckland Point School (1.0 km)
- Nearest secondary school: Nelson College For Girls (1.2 km)
- Nearest public general hospital: Nelson Hospital (1.5 km)
Being near a school does not mean being in its zone: check its enrolment scheme. Sources and limits
Places of worship near Washington Valley
No place of worship is mapped in OpenStreetMap inside Washington Valley's boundary.
Nearest mapped place of each tradition within 10 km:
- Christian: All Saints Anglican Church, under 1 km away
- Muslim: Nelson Islamic Cultural Society (NICS), 1.1 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%)
- Richmond: 94 cross-lease titles (1.1%)
- Annesbrook: 76 cross-lease titles (11.4%)
- Bishopdale: 59 cross-lease titles (12.9%)
Suburbs like Washington Valley
The closest match on the measures on this site is Toi Toi in Nelson City, nearest on unit-title share, schools, distance to the coast. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toi Toi | Nelson City | 11.6% | No data | 36.2 | unit-title share, schools, distance to the coast |
| Enner Glynn | Nelson City | 4.7% | $590 | 42.1 | commuting by public transport, working from home, unit-title share |
| Lyttelton | Christchurch City | 9.4% | $600 | 46.3 | distance to the coast, slope, unit-title share |
| Bishopdale, Nelson City | Nelson City | 12.9% | $340 | 39.7 | unit-title share, schools, degrees |
| Horahora | Whangarei District | 11.5% | $570 | 35.3 | unit-title share, children, schools |
Questions
What is the rent in Washington Valley?
New tenancies in Washington (the rent area for part of Washington Valley) had a median rent of $560 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 $495 to $640.
What schools are in Washington Valley?
No school site lies inside Washington Valley's boundary. The nearest school is Auckland Point School (1.0 km in a straight line). Being near a school does not mean being in its zone.