New Lynn, then and now
A 1910s boom
Land was first auctioned in 1865, but growth was slow until the population grew five times between 1900 and 1910. New Lynn became a borough on 1 April 1919.
Clay country
Brick and tile making clustered around New Lynn in the early 1900s, and local firms merged into the Amalgamated Brick and Pipe Company in 1929. It closed as Ceramco in 1989.
Building up near the station
Since 2010, medium and high density housing has gone up close to the town centre and station. The Merchant Quarter's first stage was finished in 2013, and its apartment tower opened in 2015.
Water in a hurry
New Lynn sits on the Whau River. In the 12 March 2017 deluge, people were trapped in floodwaters on Great North Road.
The roof jobs that come up in New Lynn
Spouting and downpipes that can't keep up. When rain arrives as fast as it did in 2017, undersized or blocked spouting spills into eaves and walls. A roofer can check the size, the number of downpipes and the fall. See spouting repairs and downpipes.
Leaks on terraces and apartments. In the Whau local board area, 27.8% of occupied homes were joined dwellings at the 2023 Census. On a shared roof, the repair usually goes through the body corporate, so report it in writing with photos and ask for the whole roof to be looked at. If the building is from 1988 to 2004, the years at the centre of the leaky homes problem, the leak might be cladding rather than roof.
Older houses due for a refresh. Standalone homes still made up 72.0% of Whau's occupied dwellings in 2023. On older roofs, the usual question is repaint or re-roof. Our guide to repainting or re-roofing an iron roof helps you decide.
What we'd do in New Lynn
In a house, we'd make sure the spouting and downpipes are sized for a real cloudburst, not an average shower. In a terrace or apartment, we'd go through the body corporate and push for one roofer to inspect the whole roof and write it up, rather than a patch over one unit.
Want a roofer to take a look?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match it with a Find My Roofer certified roofer who specialises in that kind of work, and they call you to quote. Your number goes to them alone.