Living in South Hill: rents, schools, census and property titles
The 1,485 live property titles in South Hill, Waitaki District are almost all freehold (93%), as recorded by LINZ on 30 September 2026. Cross-lease titles number 63 (4.2%), well below the national share of 8.7%.
- Cross-lease titles
- 63
- Share of live titles
- 4.2%
- Live titles in total
- 1,485
- Waitaki District share
- 2.2%
- New Zealand share
- 8.7%
- Rank by share in Waitaki District
- 3 of 3
- Rank by share in New Zealand
- joint 528 of 644
South Hill at a glance
Where South Hill differs most from suburbs across New Zealand: median weekly rent, new tenancies (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
- South Hill is listed under Waitaki District.
- 1,485 live titles are recorded here, including 63 cross-lease titles (4.2%).
- 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 4.2% of the recorded title mix. That describes the suburb, not any particular home.
- Unit titles account for 1.4% 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 South Hill
| Title type | Live titles | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Freehold | 1,374 | 92.5% |
| Cross lease | 63 | 4.2% |
| Unit title | 21 | 1.4% |
| Leasehold | 24 | 1.6% |
| Other record types | 3 | 0.2% |
| Total | 1,485 | 100% |
Counts are titles, not homes; the register can lag conversions, so check the certificate of title. Sources and limits
How South Hill compares
Nationally, 8.7% of live titles are cross-lease; South Hill is well below the national share (8.7%).
Across Waitaki District as a whole, the share is 2.2%; South Hill is about 1.9 times the overall Waitaki District share (2.2%).
How cross-leases in South Hill are set up
Three-flat schemes are more common here (46%, against 12% nationally).
Carports appear in fewer leases (4% of schemes, against 13% nationally).
Fewer schemes have four or more flats on one section (4%, against 11% nationally), up to 6.
| Scheme structure | South Hill | Waitaki District | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cross-lease schemes (shared sections) | 24 | 143 | 87,651 |
| Two-flat schemes | 50.0% | 48.3% | 76.2% |
| Three-flat schemes | 45.8% | 33.6% | 12.2% |
| Four or more flats | 4.2% | 18.2% | 11.4% |
| Typical section size (from the titles, not a survey) | 798 m² | 989 m² | 908 m² |
| Typical land per flat | 337 m² | 337 m² | 408 m² |
| Schemes with a garage written into a lease | 54.2% | 39.2% | 28.4% |
| Schemes with a carport in a lease | 4.2% | 8.4% | 13.3% |
| Schemes with a separate exclusive-use area | 8.3% | 7.0% | 4.5% |
| Schemes referring to more than one flats plan (usually redrawn; not by itself a problem) | 37.5% | 30.1% | 35.6% |
| Median year of earliest current title | 1980 | 1983 | 1988 |
| Two-flat schemes on 700 m² or more | 2 | 31 | 54,978 |
Unit titles and leasehold in South Hill
Unit titles are 1% of South Hill's titles, close to Waitaki District (1%) and well below New Zealand (8%). They belong to 3 developments, each run by a body corporate; half have 8 units or fewer.
24 titles (1.6%) are leasehold.
1 of them have a stated term that has ended or has under 10 years to run, which is worth reading closely in the lease.
Stated lease terms, as at 30 September 2026:
| Stated lease term | Titles |
|---|---|
| Stated term has ended | 1 |
| Under 10 years left | 0 |
| 10 to 50 years left | 11 |
| More than 50 years left | 0 |
| Term mentions renewal (including perpetually renewable) | 12 |
| Term not stated or not readable | 0 |
New titles in South Hill since 2020
72 of South Hill's current titles (5%) were first issued since 2020, below Waitaki District's suburbs with new-title figures taken together (7%) and well below New Zealand (12%).
| Title type | Since 2020 | Since 2023 |
|---|---|---|
| Freehold | 62 | 42 |
| Unit title | 0 | 0 |
| Cross-lease | 1 | 1 |
| Leasehold | 9 | 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 South Hill
The typical building in South Hill stands on ground sloping 5.0° (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 South Hill
4% of South Hill's titles are within 200 m of the sea or harbour edge, 26% within 500 m and 72% 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 South Hill: 2023 Census
About 77% of South Hill's titles are in the census area South Hill (a Stats NZ statistical area), so these figures describe that area, not South Hill exactly.
More workers walk or cycle to work in South Hill than across Waitaki District: 11.5% against 6.3%.
Fewer workers work from home in South Hill than across Waitaki District: 14.1% against 19.8%.
More residents were born overseas in South Hill than across Waitaki District: 23.4% against 18.7%.
| Measure | South Hill | Holmes Hill | Waitaki District whole council |
|---|---|---|---|
| Usual residents | 2,247 | 1,416 | 23,472 |
| Change since 2018 | +2.9% | +6.3% | +5.2% |
| Change since 2013 | +2.2% | +10.3% | +12.7% |
| Median age | 47 | 52.8 | 46.1 |
| Households | 984 | 633 | 9,702 |
| Own or part-own their home (including family trusts) | 73.2% | 84.4% | 73.6% |
| Not owned and not in a family trust (mostly renting) | 27.1% | 15.6% | 26.4% |
| Median household income | $62,300 | $59,200 | $68,900 |
| Median weekly rent, renting households | $346 | $350 | $296 |
| Dwellings unoccupied on census night | 10.2% | 6.1% | 18.0% |
| Ages | |||
| Under 15 | 17.5% | 15.0% | 17.2% |
| 15 to 29 | 14.0% | 12.7% | 14.9% |
| 30 to 64 | 45.7% | 40.0% | 44.0% |
| 65 and over | 22.8% | 32.2% | 23.9% |
| Where people came from | |||
| Born overseas | 23.4% | 13.6% | 18.7% |
| Of those born overseas, arrived in the last 5 years | 27.9% | 12.5% | 26.4% |
| Lived elsewhere in New Zealand 5 years ago (of all residents, including children born since) | 45.9% | 39.5% | 44.4% |
| Lived overseas 5 years ago (of all residents) | 5.2% | 2.4% | 3.4% |
| Moved here in the last year (of all residents) | 20.2% | 14.5% | 17.9% |
| Work and study (people 15 and over) | |||
| Bachelor degree or higher | 19.0% | 13.6% | 15.7% |
| Employed full-time | 45.8% | 43.8% | 47.4% |
| Unemployed (share of everyone 15 and over, not the unemployment rate) | 3.1% | 1.5% | 1.7% |
| Managers and professionals (of those employed) | 32.0% | 32.7% | 36.8% |
| Median personal income | $35,400 | $33,100 | $34,900 |
| Getting to work (of those employed) | |||
| Work from home | 14.1% | 11.8% | 19.8% |
| Car, truck or van | 72.8% | 83.6% | 71.3% |
| Bus, train or ferry | 0.5% | 0.0% | 0.3% |
| Walk or cycle | 11.5% | 4.1% | 6.3% |
| Households and families | |||
| One-person households | 34.6% | 32.9% | 31.0% |
| Average people per household | 2.2 | 2.2 | 2.3 |
| Households with no motor vehicle | 7.6% | 4.4% | 5.7% |
| Crowded households (need one or more extra bedrooms) | 3.4% | 1.0% | 3.1% |
| Couples with children (of families) | 35.3% | 31.2% | 35.3% |
| Couples without children | 50.5% | 58.0% | 52.5% |
| One-parent families | 14.2% | 10.9% | 12.2% |
| Homes | |||
| Separate (stand-alone) houses | 88.6% | 95.3% | 90.1% |
| Average bedrooms | 2.9 | 3 | 3 |
| Heated with a heat pump | 73.9% | 72.8% | 62.2% |
| Damp, always or sometimes | 17.2% | 11.8% | 15.1% |
| Mould over A4 size, always or sometimes | 11.3% | 7.8% | 10.1% |
Rents around South Hill
New tenancies in South Hill in the April–June 2026 quarter had a median rent of $465 a week. That is below the national median ($600).
| April–June 2026 | South Hill | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Median weekly rent, new tenancies | $465 | $600 |
| Middle half of rents | $430–$496 | $490–$700 |
| Change in median on a year earlier | — | +0.2% |
| Bonds lodged in the quarter | 12 | 40,827 |
Schools and hospitals near South Hill
One school site lies inside South Hill: Fenwick School (Contributing).
- Fenwick School (Contributing)
- Nearest school: Fenwick School (0.7 km)
- Nearest secondary school: Waitaki Girls' High School (2.5 km)
- Nearest public general hospital: Ōamaru Hospital (1.3 km)
School enrolment zones in South Hill: a guide
The largest primary-school zone share of South Hill's titles is in Fenwick School's home zone (all or nearly all).
- Fenwick School (primary, Years 1–6): all or nearly all titles
- Oamaru Intermediate (intermediate, Years 7–8): 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 South Hill
OpenStreetMap maps 1 place of worship inside South Hill (1 Christian).
Nearest mapped place of each tradition within 10 km:
- Christian: Saint Luke's Anglican Church, 1.0 km away
Listed as facilities for access; not an indicator of who lives here. Sources and limits
Suburbs like South Hill
The closest match on the measures on this site is Oamaru in Waitaki District, nearest on distance to the coast, land per flat, commuting by public transport. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oamaru | Waitaki District | 6.4% | $495 | 44.3 | distance to the coast, land per flat, commuting by public transport |
| Waimataitai | Timaru District | 8.3% | $490 | 44.4 | distance to the coast, population change, born overseas |
| Balclutha | Clutha District | 4.1% | $500 | 42.7 | cross-lease share, population change, commuting by public transport |
| Highfield | Timaru District | 11.4% | $500 | 51 | commuting by public transport, new titles, recent movers within NZ |
| Oamaru North | Waitaki District | 5.6% | $455 | 39.9 | land per flat, commuting by public transport, distance to the coast |
Questions
What is the rent in South Hill?
New tenancies in the South Hill rent area had a median rent of $465 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 $430 to $496.
What schools are in South Hill?
LINZ maps 1 school site inside South Hill: Fenwick School. The nearest secondary school to its centre is Waitaki Girls' High School (2.5 km in a straight line). Being near a school does not mean being in its zone.