– Nightcaps has become a haven for newcomers seeking affordability and community connection.
– Zane Knight and Heather Johns highlight the town’s welcoming nature and affordable property market.
– Knight is selling his property for $129,000 to move to Scotland, while Johns plans to travel.
In Nightcaps, homeowners still hand tools over the fence to new residents, and will cook soup for sick or infirm neighbours.
The former Southland coal-mining settlement, which is under an hour’s drive from Invercargill, has reinvented itself as a haven for newcomers chasing affordability and connection.
The town’s modest property prices are only part of the story. What keeps people here is the sense of belonging, the shared gardens, and the quiet assurance that someone will notice if you need a hand.
For vendors like Zane Knight and Heather Johns, the town’s property market is more than just affordable. It’s a reminder of the New Zealand of their childhoods.
Knight’s Nightcaps story started with a tent. He had quit Invercargill in 2022 after suffering burnout and was looking for a fresh start when he spotted a 2000sqm plot of land for sale at 41 & 43 Johnston Road, in Nightcaps. He made an offer and spent his first winter in the town under canvas while he built a shed and then a cabin at his new property.
Zane Knight is selling his 2000sqm property at 41 & 43 Johnston Road, in Nightcaps, for $129,000. Photo / Supplied
The property has been pitched to buyers as an “off-grid sanctuary”. Photo / Supplied
“It wasn’t a pup tent,” Knight told OneRoof. “It was one of those big bell tents, and you can put a fire in there.”
He wasn’t short of help, though. Locals soon introduced themselves and offered him the use of their tools. A group of residents who made soups and stews for pensioners in the community also made sure he was never hungry.
“They were very, very welcoming,” Knight said, adding that his mate, Phil Orr, who owns a draughting company, Archdraft, made sure his plans complied with Southland District Council rules.
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Knight repaid his new hometown in kind, using his building skills to help others in the community. “This is what New Zealand was like in the 50s, 60s and 70s. People cared for each other.”
Knight has even found new love, but doing so means he’ll be waving a tearful goodbye to Nightcaps as he follows the woman of his dreams to Scotland. “I am head over heels in love, and want to take every opportunity to live my life,” he said, putting 41 & 43 Johnston Road on the market for sale for $129,000.
Heather Johns, who is also selling in the town, knows Knight and told OneRoof the town would miss him. “He fixed my fence,” she said, adding that she was happy he was following his heart to Scotland.
Heather Johns’ home at 11 High Street East is a charmer. Photo / Supplied
Johns is selling her cottage so she can go travelling in her campervan. Photo / Supplied
Johns moved to Nightcaps from Havelock North 20 years ago, seeking a better place to raise her children. “Havelock North at that time was going from village to Yuppy-ville. The whole thing changed in a very short time. There were boy racers, the butcher went and a nightclub came. It was in-fill housing, and it became quite stressful to live there. I thought to myself, ‘I want to bring up my kids in the New Zealand that I grew up in.’
“I looked for something that I could buy free of all restrictions, and ended up in this place called Nightcaps. I didn’t really know where it was. So off I went in my van with the dog and the cat and the two kids, and down we came.”
Johns bought a two-bedroom, one bathroom 50sqm property on 784sqm of land at 11 High Street East.
When she first arrived, Nightcaps was still an old mining community, and the old families weren’t all that welcoming. “It was like, ‘Well, what do you want to be here for? What are you running away from?’”
Harcourts agent Eileen Brooker recently sold this smart-looking home on High Street West for $330,000. Photo / Supplied
She has another three-bedroom cottage for sale for $275,000 at 18 Annan Street. Photo / Supplied
But that changed as more and more people moved from different parts of the country and even different corners of the world. “We’ve had people from Auckland, from Peru, from Germany, from Russia. My neighbours have just moved down from Kaitaia. They’re a retired couple. And they’ve all brought new ideas.”
She said these days, everyone is helpful. “It’s truly a nice community.”
Johns said Nightcaps didn’t feel remote. “It’s ten minutes to Otautau, which is a bigger township, and only half an hour to Winton, which has about 3000 people and everything you need -supermarkets, shops, everything.”
Nightcaps itself has several businesses, including a hotel, a mechanic, a medical centre, and a Four Square.
The local microclimate proved to be very good for growing vegetables, Johns said. “Everybody does seem to have gardens. The growing season is short, and you do need a tunnel house. But you really do get into gardening when you’re in Nightcaps because there is not a lot to do. You also spend a lot of time in your garden because you’ve got to commute to go to the shop. So you tend to grow as much as you can.
“And it’s a nice safe community. Everyone keeps an eye on each other’s properties.”
With her children having flown the nest, Johns has decided to sell up and go travelling in her campervan. Her house is listed for sale with Tawhiti McPherson, of Tall Poppy, with an asking price of $159,000-plus.
Low prices aren’t unusual in Nightcaps. The latest OneRoof figures show the average property value in the town is $261,000 – one of the lowest in the country (although it has doubled in the last five years).
Harcourts agent Eileen Brooker, who has been selling in Nightcaps for 28 years, said the town offered a range of properties, from those that needed a bit of work to fully renovated houses. She recently sold a smart-looking three-bedroom home on High Street West for $330,000. “Our purchaser came from Queenstown because he couldn’t afford Queenstown,” she told OneRoof. “It’s his first home.”
Brooker has another tidy home for sale at 18 Annan Street. The three-bedroom property has a price tag of $275,000. “Where else can you secure a charming property like this for just $275K?,” Brooker writes in the listing. “This gem is tastefully presented with modern touches that blend comfort and style – seeing is believing!”