Living in Highfield: rents, schools, census and property titles
The 1,717 live property titles in Highfield, Timaru District are almost all freehold (83%), as recorded by LINZ on 30 September 2026. Cross-lease titles number 195 (11.4%), above the national share of 8.7%.
- Cross-lease titles
- 195
- Share of live titles
- 11.4%
- Live titles in total
- 1,717
- Timaru District share
- 6.3%
- New Zealand share
- 8.7%
- Rank by share in Timaru District
- 3 of 12
- Rank by share in New Zealand
- joint 290 of 644
Highfield at a glance
Where Highfield differs most from suburbs across New Zealand: median age (higher than 94% of NZ suburbs); homes with a heat pump (higher than 90% of NZ suburbs).
Higher or lower is not better or worse. Sources and limits
Start here
What the data tells you
Recorded facts
- Highfield is listed under Timaru District.
- 1,717 live titles are recorded here, including 195 cross-lease titles (11.4%).
- 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 11.4% of the recorded title mix. That describes the suburb, not any particular home.
- Unit titles account for 3.8% 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 Highfield
| Title type | Live titles | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Freehold | 1,426 | 83.1% |
| Cross lease | 195 | 11.4% |
| Unit title | 66 | 3.8% |
| Leasehold | 2 | 0.1% |
| Other record types | 28 | 1.6% |
| Total | 1,717 | 100% |
Counts are titles, not homes; the register can lag conversions, so check the certificate of title. Sources and limits
How Highfield compares
Nationally, 8.7% of live titles are cross-lease; Highfield is higher than the national share (8.7%).
Across Timaru District as a whole, the share is 6.3%; Highfield is about 1.8 times the overall Timaru District share (6.3%).
Its cross-lease share is 3rd highest of 12 in Timaru District (among suburbs with an indexed page on this site).
How cross-leases in Highfield are set up
Carports appear in fewer leases (5% of schemes, against 13% nationally).
Separate exclusive-use areas are less common (2% of schemes, against 5% nationally).
More leases include a garage (40% of schemes, against 28% nationally).
| Scheme structure | Highfield | Timaru District | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cross-lease schemes (shared sections) | 83 | 620 | 87,651 |
| Two-flat schemes | 74.7% | 64.4% | 76.2% |
| Three-flat schemes | 13.3% | 19.2% | 12.2% |
| Four or more flats | 12.0% | 16.5% | 11.4% |
| Typical section size (from the titles, not a survey) | 779 m² | 831 m² | 908 m² |
| Typical land per flat | 346 m² | 337 m² | 408 m² |
| Schemes with a garage written into a lease | 39.8% | 32.1% | 28.4% |
| Schemes with a carport in a lease | 4.8% | 11.1% | 13.3% |
| Schemes with a separate exclusive-use area | 2.4% | 2.7% | 4.5% |
| Schemes referring to more than one flats plan (usually redrawn; not by itself a problem) | 26.5% | 28.7% | 35.6% |
| Median year of earliest current title | 1980 | 1984 | 1988 |
| Two-flat schemes on 700 m² or more | 38 | 230 | 54,978 |
Unit titles and leasehold in Highfield
Unit titles are 4% of Highfield's titles, well above Timaru District (2%) and well below New Zealand (8%). They belong to 17 developments, each run by a body corporate; half have 2 units or fewer.
New titles in Highfield since 2020
87 of Highfield's current titles (5%) were first issued since 2020, well below Timaru District's suburbs with new-title figures taken together (8%) and well below New Zealand (12%).
| Title type | Since 2020 | Since 2023 |
|---|---|---|
| Freehold | 84 | 47 |
| 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 Highfield
The typical building in Highfield stands on ground sloping 3.0° (read on an 8 m grid, so short steep banks may be understated).
Unusually much of the sloping land faces north: 38%, where about a quarter would if slopes faced every way equally.
Slope is not a measure of ground stability. Sources and limits
Distance to the coast from Highfield
0% of Highfield's titles are within 200 m of the sea or harbour edge, 0% within 500 m and 3% within 1 km. The typical title is 2.1 km 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 Highfield: 2023 Census
About 61% of Highfield's titles are in the census area Highfield North (a Stats NZ statistical area), so these figures describe that area, not Highfield exactly.
More households have no car in Highfield North than across Timaru District: 8.2% against 5.6%.
More adults hold a degree in Highfield North than across Timaru District: 22.0% against 15.3%.
More residents are 65 or over in Highfield North than across Timaru District: 30.9% against 22.9%.
| Measure | Highfield North | Highfield South | Timaru District whole council |
|---|---|---|---|
| Usual residents | 2,376 | 1,263 | 47,547 |
| Change since 2018 | +0.8% | +1.0% | +2.7% |
| Change since 2013 | +6.9% | +5.5% | +8.2% |
| Median age | 51 | 39.5 | 44.6 |
| Households | 1,005 | 507 | 19,557 |
| Own or part-own their home (including family trusts) | 74.6% | 76.3% | 74.5% |
| Not owned and not in a family trust (mostly renting) | 25.4% | 23.1% | 25.5% |
| Median household income | $74,100 | $84,300 | $76,900 |
| Median weekly rent, renting households | $350 | $390 | $320 |
| Dwellings unoccupied on census night | 6.4% | 5.0% | 8.0% |
| Ages | |||
| Under 15 | 15.4% | 19.5% | 17.6% |
| 15 to 29 | 14.8% | 19.2% | 15.7% |
| 30 to 64 | 38.9% | 43.7% | 43.9% |
| 65 and over | 30.9% | 17.6% | 22.9% |
| Where people came from | |||
| Born overseas | 16.3% | 19.3% | 16.1% |
| Of those born overseas, arrived in the last 5 years | 27.6% | 21.3% | 24.1% |
| Lived elsewhere in New Zealand 5 years ago (of all residents, including children born since) | 45.4% | 40.4% | 42.1% |
| Lived overseas 5 years ago (of all residents) | 3.3% | 2.9% | 2.8% |
| Moved here in the last year (of all residents) | 18.7% | 16.2% | 15.7% |
| Work and study (people 15 and over) | |||
| Bachelor degree or higher | 22.0% | 16.9% | 15.3% |
| Employed full-time | 44.6% | 51.2% | 48.9% |
| Unemployed (share of everyone 15 and over, not the unemployment rate) | 1.6% | 1.2% | 1.8% |
| Managers and professionals (of those employed) | 44.4% | 34.9% | 36.1% |
| Median personal income | $37,400 | $41,500 | $38,600 |
| Getting to work (of those employed) | |||
| Work from home | 11.8% | 7.0% | 13.5% |
| Car, truck or van | 79.8% | 83.4% | 78.7% |
| Bus, train or ferry | 0.5% | 1.7% | 0.6% |
| Walk or cycle | 7.6% | 6.6% | 5.7% |
| Households and families | |||
| One-person households | 32.6% | 24.2% | 28.7% |
| Average people per household | 2.2 | 2.4 | 2.3 |
| Households with no motor vehicle | 8.2% | 4.9% | 5.6% |
| Crowded households (need one or more extra bedrooms) | 2.8% | 1.8% | 2.9% |
| Couples with children (of families) | 32.7% | 38.7% | 35.5% |
| Couples without children | 53.7% | 46.2% | 50.8% |
| One-parent families | 14.0% | 15.1% | 13.6% |
| Homes | |||
| Separate (stand-alone) houses | 79.9% | 91.1% | 85.0% |
| Average bedrooms | 2.9 | 3.1 | 3 |
| Heated with a heat pump | 85.5% | 85.3% | 74.5% |
| Damp, always or sometimes | 10.5% | 17.1% | 14.6% |
| Mould over A4 size, always or sometimes | 7.6% | 11.3% | 9.5% |
Rents around Highfield
New tenancies in Highfield North in the April–June 2026 quarter had a median rent of $500 a week (down 9.9% on a year earlier). That is close to the typical suburb in Timaru District ($470), and slightly below the national median ($600); the highest of 7 in Timaru District.
| April–June 2026 | Highfield North | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Median weekly rent, new tenancies | $500 | $600 |
| Middle half of rents | $458–$550 | $490–$700 |
| Change in median on a year earlier | −9.9% | +0.2% |
| Bonds lodged in the quarter | 18 | 40,827 |
Schools and hospitals near Highfield
LINZ maps 2 school sites inside Highfield, among them Craighead Diocesan School (Secondary (Year 7-15)) and Highfield School (Full Primary).
- Craighead Diocesan School (Secondary (Year 7-15))
- Highfield School (Full Primary)
- Nearest school: Craighead Diocesan School (0.2 km)
- Nearest secondary school: Craighead Diocesan School (0.2 km)
- Nearest public general hospital: Timaru Hospital (3.4 km)
School enrolment zones in Highfield: a guide
Three secondary schools have a home zone covering most of Highfield's titles: Craighead Diocesan School, Roncalli College and Mountainview High School.
- St Joseph's School (Timaru) (primary, Years 1–8): all or nearly all titles
- Highfield School (primary, Years 1–8): about 70% of titles
- Waimataitai School (primary, Years 1–8): about 35% of titles
- Bluestone School (primary, Years 1–8): about 10% of titles
- Craighead Diocesan School (secondary): all or nearly all titles
- Roncalli College (secondary): all or nearly all titles
- Mountainview High School (secondary): about 95% of 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 Highfield
OpenStreetMap maps 4 places of worship inside Highfield (4 Christian).
Nearest mapped place of each tradition within 10 km:
- Christian: Craighead Diocesan School Chapel, under 1 km away
Listed as facilities for access; not an indicator of who lives here. Sources and limits
Other suburbs in Timaru District with many cross-leases
- Seaview: 195 cross-lease titles (18.5%)
- Temuka: 170 cross-lease titles (5.9%)
- Maori Hill: 157 cross-lease titles (27.0%)
- Geraldine: 98 cross-lease titles (5.3%)
- Glenwood: 91 cross-lease titles (11.2%)
- Gleniti: 90 cross-lease titles (6.4%)
All suburbs in Timaru District
Suburbs like Highfield
The closest match on the measures on this site is Waimataitai in Timaru District, nearest on distance to a hospital, unit-title share, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waimataitai | Timaru District | 8.3% | $490 | 44.4 | distance to a hospital, unit-title share, population change |
| Allenton | Ashburton District | 8.6% | $435 | 51.6 | schools, born overseas, commuting by public transport |
| Gleniti | Timaru District | 6.4% | No data | 48 | commuting by public transport, born overseas, population change |
| South Hill | Waitaki District | 4.2% | $465 | 47 | commuting by public transport, new titles, recent movers within NZ |
| Springlands | Marlborough District | 6.5% | No data | 48.8 | degrees, children, unit-title share |
Questions
What is the rent in Highfield?
New tenancies in Highfield North (the rent area for part of Highfield) had a median rent of $500 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 $458 to $550.
What schools are in Highfield?
LINZ maps 2 school sites inside Highfield: Craighead Diocesan School and Highfield School. The nearest secondary school to its centre is Craighead Diocesan School (0.2 km in a straight line). Secondary-school home zones covering most of its titles are Craighead Diocesan School, Roncalli College and Mountainview High School; check the school's own zone map for any address.