AA Insurance Location, Location, Location NZ is back, baby. Season 2 has kicked off, and we’re once again buckling up to navigate the Kiwi property market with our eager house-hunters.
Reuniting with hosts Paul Glover and Jayne Kiely is like catching up with your fun cousins at the family function – you only see them once a year, but there’s always plenty of good-natured ribbing, in-jokes and lore shared.
2025 has been another interesting year for the New Zealand property market. As Jayne puts it, “it’s a bit like our weather – it’s unpredictable, occasionally wild and everyone’s got an opinion”. But as always, Jayne and Paul are armed and ready to assist two couples with the challenges and compromises that come with finding their dream home.
In episode one, Paul is helping high school sweethearts Ben and Jade Braggins – although Jade crushingly reminds Ben she has absolutely no memory of him there – to find a home for their growing whanau in Cambridge, where they’re originally from. Meanwhile, Jayne is lending her expertise to later-in-life lovebirds Jane Rangiwahia and Andrew Swan, who are hunting for a country escape just south of Auckland.
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Family first
Ben and Jade have spent a few years globetrotting (they fell in love in Canada) , but now with two young children in tow, three-year-old Ivy and eight-month-old Reuben, it’s time to move back home closer to family. Jade speaks for new parents everywhere when she says: “When you’re not sleeping and shit hits the fan, you want someone to be just down the road.”
These two aren’t afraid of a renovation and sold their previous do-up to fund their Cambridge dream. They’re looking for a three-bedroom home with plenty of future potential, space for the kids to run around, and are working with a mostly cash budget of $750,000.
Ben and Jade Braggins road-tested three Cambridge homes but missed out on one they liked. Photo / Supplied
Property number one is an original two-bedroom, 1940s bungalow that wows the couple with its quaint heritage character, cosy vibes and separate sleepout/studio. Although the asking price of $715,000 is well within budget, it’s just not practical for the family right now.
With the “ooh” count rising as they make their way through the house, property number two is looking like a winner. They love the space of the three-bedroom 1960s weatherboard home, as well as the outdoor living and the expansive, fully fenced yard.
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Jayne joins the crew for house number three, in Leamington, where Jade and Ben’s friends live. We’ve crept up through the decades for this “wild card”, with the 1970s original reaping the benefits of a stylish recent renovation. After having their hearts set on property number two, the couple surprised themselves with how much they love the space, scope and flow here. “It’s like an Alice in Wonderland situation,” says Jade. “It just keeps growing and growing!”
While the couple’s offer on house number two wasn’t accepted, armed with Paul’s intel and advice, they had an offer accepted on a three-bedroom property in Leamington two weeks later, and now have a family home in a suburb they love.
The sweet escape
As we’ve sat in hours of morning gridlock or heard neighbours arguing over the fence, most of us have considered packing it all in and trading urban chaos for country calm.
After years of inner-city living, food stylist and author Jane Rangiwahia and barrister Andrew Swan are doing just that. They’ve been married six years and have just graduated to grandparent status. Keen hosts, avid gardeners and parents to fur babies Coco-Belle and Boo-Boo, they’re looking for a manageable lifestyle property with a three-bedroom, character home that’s within a scooter ride to the nearest train station, so Andrew can get to work.
They have a budget of around $2m for their forever home, aren’t afraid of a project, and while they agree they rarely argue about anything house related, “if there’s a compromise, we’ll go Jane’s way,” Andrew says wisely.
Kiely with author Jane Rangiwahia and barrister Andrew Swan. They have a budget of $2m and are still searching. Photo / Supplied
Jayne joins the troops for property number one, but there’s no sign of Paul until he rounds the corner on the ride-on mower – the “Lawn Ranger”, as Jayne deems him.
While the heated indoor swimming pool, sauna and bar blew Andrew and Jane away, the five-acre land and super-sized home were just too large for their needs. Bombay is the next stop, which the couple are familiar with as they have friends living in the area.
They adore the colonial beauty and inviting feel of the four-bedroom home, and the superlatives flow as they embark on the tour. “I think we’re on a winner-winner here for sure,” says Jayne.
In Buckland, property number three is a switch-up from the previous two and is an off-market opportunity, so Andrew and Jane are getting the first look. The elegant four-bedroom home has a pool and is close to the train station, plus is absolutely enormous. “Did you stop by the gift shop and get the T-shirt on your way out?” jokes Jayne.
All said and done, there was too much going on for them at property number one, and although they loved property number three, they felt it was more of a family home. As for property number two, Jane had already mentally moved in, but they decided that tending the grounds would be a full-time gig. However, the journey encouraged a reset and rethink of their mindset, and they continue to search for their tranquil country escape.
Fashion watch
Paul’s sartorial nod to his rural Waikato house-hunt is overflowing with big farming energy – a matching pocket square and gumboots. Jayne even says he’s looking very “Margo-esque,” in reference to Margo Leadbetter of The Good Life.
Lines of the week
After hearing about Jane and Andrew’s dream to have a studio they could Airbnb and cook for their guests to make them feel special, Paul reveals he wants to move in with them himself.
“That might be a bit awkward, Paul. They’ve actually got really good taste,” says Jayne.
After Paul proudly announces, “That’s why they call me Paul ‘The Challenge’ Glover!”
Jane responds with, “er, I’m pretty sure his middle name is Darren.”
- AA Insurance Location, Location, Location NZ appears on TVNZ 1 at 7.30pm on Sundays and on TVNZ+.
