Living in Kawaha Point: rents, schools, census and property titles
The 770 live property titles in Kawaha Point, Rotorua District are mostly freehold (71%), as recorded by LINZ on 30 September 2026. Cross-lease titles number 140 (18.2%), well above the national share of 8.7%.
Kawaha Point cross-lease titles
- Cross-lease titles
- 140
- Share of live titles
- 18.2%
- Live titles in total
- 770
- Rotorua District share
- 12.8%
- New Zealand share
- 8.7%
- Rank by share in Rotorua District
- 5 of 20
- Rank by share in New Zealand
- joint 150 of 644
Kawaha Point at a glance
Where Kawaha Point differs most from suburbs across New Zealand: typical distance to the coast (higher 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
- Kawaha Point is listed under Rotorua District.
- 770 live titles are recorded here, including 140 cross-lease titles (18.2%).
- 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 18.2% of the recorded title mix. That describes the suburb, not any particular home.
- Unit titles account for 9.2% 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 Kawaha Point
| Title type | Live titles | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Freehold | 547 | 71.0% |
| Cross lease | 140 | 18.2% |
| Unit title | 71 | 9.2% |
| Leasehold | 9 | 1.2% |
| Other record types | 3 | 0.4% |
| Total | 770 | 100% |
Counts are titles, not homes; the register can lag conversions, so check the certificate of title. Sources and limits
How Kawaha Point compares
Nationally, 8.7% of live titles are cross-lease; Kawaha Point is about 2.1 times the national share (8.7%).
Across Rotorua District as a whole, the share is 12.8%; Kawaha Point is higher than the overall Rotorua District share (12.8%).
Its cross-lease share is in the highest quarter of 20 in Rotorua District (among suburbs with an indexed page on this site).
How cross-leases in Kawaha Point are set up
Fewer schemes have four or more flats on one section (1%, against 11% nationally).
Three-flat schemes are less common here (3%, against 12% nationally).
Carports appear in fewer leases (6% of schemes, against 13% nationally).
| Scheme structure | Kawaha Point | Rotorua District | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cross-lease schemes (shared sections) | 69 | 1,958 | 87,651 |
| Two-flat schemes | 95.7% | 82.2% | 76.2% |
| Three-flat schemes | 2.9% | 9.2% | 12.2% |
| Four or more flats | 1.4% | 8.3% | 11.4% |
| Typical section size (from the titles, not a survey) | 1,011 m² | 1,022 m² | 908 m² |
| Typical land per flat | 506 m² | 506 m² | 408 m² |
| Schemes with a garage written into a lease | 23.2% | 23.4% | 28.4% |
| Schemes with a carport in a lease | 5.8% | 5.5% | 13.3% |
| Schemes with a separate exclusive-use area | 4.3% | 4.0% | 4.5% |
| Schemes referring to more than one flats plan (usually redrawn; not by itself a problem) | 43.5% | 27.5% | 35.6% |
| Median year of earliest current title | 1988 | 1987 | 1988 |
| Two-flat schemes on 700 m² or more | 66 | 1,565 | 54,978 |
New titles in Kawaha Point since 2020
28 of Kawaha Point's current titles (4%) were first issued since 2020, well below Rotorua District's suburbs with new-title figures taken together (8%) and well below New Zealand (12%).
Most came recently: 21 since 2023.
| Title type | Since 2020 | Since 2023 |
|---|---|---|
| Freehold | 22 | 17 |
| Unit title | 0 | 0 |
| Cross-lease | 4 | 2 |
| Leasehold | 2 | 2 |
| 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 Kawaha Point
The typical building in Kawaha Point stands on ground sloping 1.7° (read on an 8 m grid, so short steep banks may be understated).
Slope is not a measure of ground stability. Sources and limits
Distance to the coast from Kawaha Point
Kawaha Point is inland: the typical title is 42 km from the sea or harbour edge, and none is within 1 km of it.
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 Kawaha Point: 2023 Census
About 100% of Kawaha Point's titles are in the census area Kawaha (a Stats NZ statistical area), so these figures describe that area, not Kawaha Point exactly.
More adults hold a degree in Kawaha than across Rotorua District: 25.7% against 20.3%.
| Measure | Kawaha | Rotorua District whole council |
|---|---|---|
| Usual residents | 1,905 | 74,058 |
| Change since 2018 | +0.2% | +3.0% |
| Change since 2013 | +7.4% | +13.4% |
| Median age | 39.6 | 36.6 |
| Households | 663 | 25,413 |
| Own or part-own their home (including family trusts) | 67.9% | 64.5% |
| Not owned and not in a family trust (mostly renting) | 32.6% | 35.5% |
| Median household income | $93,200 | $87,700 |
| Median weekly rent, renting households | $450 | $400 |
| Dwellings unoccupied on census night | 10.2% | 12.8% |
| Ages | ||
| Under 15 | 19.8% | 21.7% |
| 15 to 29 | 18.7% | 19.0% |
| 30 to 64 | 44.3% | 43.7% |
| 65 and over | 17.3% | 15.6% |
| Where people came from | ||
| Born overseas | 20.7% | 18.1% |
| Of those born overseas, arrived in the last 5 years | 14.7% | 22.9% |
| Lived elsewhere in New Zealand 5 years ago (of all residents, including children born since) | 44.8% | 44.8% |
| Lived overseas 5 years ago (of all residents) | 3.9% | 3.6% |
| Moved here in the last year (of all residents) | 18.8% | 18.9% |
| Work and study (people 15 and over) | ||
| Bachelor degree or higher | 25.7% | 20.3% |
| Employed full-time | 46.5% | 50.3% |
| Unemployed (share of everyone 15 and over, not the unemployment rate) | 3.5% | 4.4% |
| Managers and professionals (of those employed) | 44.8% | 41.0% |
| Median personal income | $39,400 | $39,000 |
| Getting to work (of those employed) | ||
| Work from home | 13.6% | 14.2% |
| Car, truck or van | 81.7% | 79.6% |
| Bus, train or ferry | 0.6% | 0.9% |
| Walk or cycle | 3.5% | 4.1% |
| Households and families | ||
| One-person households | 22.9% | 23.5% |
| Average people per household | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| Households with no motor vehicle | 5.2% | 6.1% |
| Crowded households (need one or more extra bedrooms) | 7.0% | 8.8% |
| Couples with children (of families) | 36.1% | 38.7% |
| Couples without children | 39.2% | 38.1% |
| One-parent families | 24.1% | 23.2% |
| Homes | ||
| Separate (stand-alone) houses | 81.4% | 81.6% |
| Average bedrooms | 3.3 | 3.1 |
| Heated with a heat pump | 66.0% | 59.6% |
| Damp, always or sometimes | 18.8% | 23.6% |
| Mould over A4 size, always or sometimes | 14.7% | 18.7% |
Rents around Kawaha Point
New tenancies in Kawaha in the April–June 2026 quarter had a median rent of $665 a week (up 3.4% on a year earlier). That is slightly above the typical suburb in Rotorua District ($590), and slightly above the national median ($600); 2nd highest of 15 in Rotorua District.
| April–June 2026 | Kawaha | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Median weekly rent, new tenancies | $665 | $600 |
| Middle half of rents | $600–$705 | $490–$700 |
| Change in median on a year earlier | +3.4% | +0.2% |
| Bonds lodged in the quarter | 12 | 40,827 |
Schools and hospitals near Kawaha Point
One school site lies inside Kawaha Point: Kawaha Point School (Contributing).
- Kawaha Point School (Contributing)
- Nearest school: Kawaha Point School (0.1 km)
- Nearest secondary school: Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Te Koutu (1.2 km)
- Nearest public general hospital: Rotorua Hospital (2.7 km)
School enrolment zones in Kawaha Point: a guide
Four secondary schools have a home zone covering most of Kawaha Point's titles, among them John Paul College, Rotorua Boys' High School and Rotorua Girls' High School.
- John Paul College (secondary): all or nearly all titles
- Rotorua Boys' High School (secondary): all or nearly all titles
- Rotorua Girls' High School (secondary): all or nearly all titles
- Western Heights High School (secondary): 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 Kawaha Point
No place of worship is mapped in OpenStreetMap inside Kawaha Point's boundary.
Nearest mapped place of each tradition within 10 km:
- Christian: Kingdom Hall Of Jehovah's Witnesses, under 1 km away
- Hindu: Hindu Heritage Centre Rotorua, 4.0 km away
- Muslim: Rotorua Islamic Association, 4.6 km away
- Sikh: Gurdwara Sri Guru Amardas Sahib Ji, 5.4 km away
Listed as facilities for access; not an indicator of who lives here. Sources and limits
Other suburbs in Rotorua District with many cross-leases
- Glenholme: 569 cross-lease titles (29.6%)
- Ōwhata: 365 cross-lease titles (12.6%)
- Victoria: 355 cross-lease titles (34.2%)
- Western Heights: 320 cross-lease titles (25.4%)
- Mangakakahi: 283 cross-lease titles (16.1%)
- Koutu: 277 cross-lease titles (27.8%)
- Ngongotahā: 263 cross-lease titles (12.4%)
- Pukehangi: 243 cross-lease titles (13.5%)
All suburbs in Rotorua District
Suburbs like Kawaha Point
The closest match on the measures on this site is Pomare in Rotorua District, nearest on commuting by public transport, schools, population change. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pomare | Rotorua District | 11.0% | No data | 41.3 | commuting by public transport, schools, population change |
| Utuhina | Rotorua District | 17.7% | $620 | 36.2 | elevation, commuting by public transport, new titles |
| Sunnybrook | Rotorua District | 12.8% | No data | 35.5 | population change, heat pumps, new titles |
| Fairy Spring | Rotorua District | 16.8% | No data | 33.8 | land per flat, schools, population change |
| Ngongotahā | Rotorua District | 12.4% | No data | 41.7 | schools, land per flat, population change |
Questions
What is the rent in Kawaha Point?
New tenancies in Kawaha (the rent area for part of Kawaha Point) had a median rent of $665 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 $600 to $705.
What schools are in Kawaha Point?
LINZ maps 1 school site inside Kawaha Point: Kawaha Point School. The nearest secondary school to its centre is Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Te Koutu (1.2 km in a straight line). Secondary-school home zones covering most of its titles include John Paul College, Rotorua Boys' High School and Rotorua Girls' High School; check the school's own zone map for any address.