– Hamish McKay, former TV broadcaster, transitioned to real estate, selling high-end Auckland homes.
– He moved to Manawatū, focusing on auctioneering and building an auction culture in Feilding.
– McKay also returned to radio, hosting on NZME’s The Country and Gold FM.
Former TV broadcaster Hamish McKay still has sleepless nights about Auckland house prices.
During market peak, he was selling townhouses in Glen Innes for just under $1 million – well above the prices he’s used to nowadays in his new patch of Manawatū.
McKay quit Kiwi TV screens nine years ago and became a real estate agent. He spent most of his time selling high-end homes in St Heliers, Glendowie, and Mission Bay, but he also found himself in 2021 and 2022 selling two-bedroom homes in Glen Innes, a working-class suburb that was in the midst of redevelopment.
“I still sit bolt upright at night thinking about the 70sqm homes I sold for $900,000. I go, ‘Whoa’. That was at the peak of the market.”
McKay fronting Newshub on TV3 during his broadcasting heyday. Photo / Getty Images
The subsequent slowdown in the Auckland housing market made him question not so much what he was doing but where he was doing it.
“One of my frustrations in Auckland was that I was listing $2m to $3m to $4m-plus properties that vendors hoped would sell for a lot more, but in reality they were worth a lot less.”
A chance meeting with agents from Tremains while he was auctioneering a charity event in Hawke’s Bay earlier this year was the turning point. “They said, ‘Hamish, are you auctioneering?’ And I said, ‘No, but I should be and I want to be,’ and one thing led to another.”
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In July, McKay opened up to Herald NOW host Ryan Bridge about the new lease of life he had following bariatric surgery and a 55kg drop in weight. Around the same time, he said goodbye to 30 years of life in Auckland and returned to his roots in Manawatū.
“It was really about coming home more than anything else, but the move was also an opportunity to get involved with auctioneering.”
McKay told OneRoof that he was focused on building an auction culture in Manawatū. “I believe, as an agent and a seller, it’s the best method of sale. I’m unashamedly an auction guy, and I say if you want action, then you need to auction.”
McKay with the Tremains team in Manawatū. He plans to increase auction use in the region. Photo / Supplied
While real estate remains the main focus, he’s also recently returned to the airwaves after a two-year hiatus.
McKay is a fill-in host on NZME’s The Country and has a regular spot on Gold FM.
“First and foremost, it’s real estate all day, but I love doing radio, and to be quite frank, I’m pretty bloody good at it. I had told myself for a long time that I wasn’t – I had lost my MOJO for a bit – but now I’ve got a few people in my camp backing me and giving me opportunities to do stuff I love.
“I treat radio like golf. It’s my release.”
However, he believes real estate and broadcasting are similar, telling OneRoof that both jobs require good communication skills.
McKay is helping his colleague Natasha Banner with sale of 15 Windsor Terrace, in Feilding. Photo / Supplied
“Getting an interview with Richie McCaw is like listing a house. You’ve got to go in there to win, you’ve got to hustle for the right to get that interview or get that listing.”
McKay splits his time between Feilding and Auckland, where his wife and son work, but says it is only a matter of time until they are all in Manawatū.
He hasn’t bought a house yet because he wants to wait until his wife moves down, but one thing he is certain of is how much more bang for your buck you get in Feilding.
A prime example is a property at 15 Windsor Terrace, in Feilding, which he is helping Tremains colleague Natasha Banner sell.
“I went to it and I was sort of choking on my Weeties, going, ‘I can’t believe how much this is for the suggested money.’”
McKay talks up the town whenever he’s with friends from Auckland. “I’ve been thinking of going down to Britomart and putting on a sandwich board and going ‘Fielding – come on you guys, what are you doing? Why are you here?’”
He added: “It’s been a breath of fresh air going down there. Feeling at home down there has been great. As I grow the Manawatū business, we will all be down there sooner than later.”