Why do so many people want to live in the Tasman region?

The Tasman region is growing quicker than anywhere in the country with the population rapidly becoming more ethnically diverse.

Census results show Tasman grew by 10.3% in 2023, compared to the previous census in 2018.

One of those who moved to the region was Daniel Raats who came for the lifestyle and to be closer to family.

"We'd been in Wellington for a number of years. We'd be shooting a basketball and it drifts to the right in the wind. We started to realise we wanted to spend more time outside or doing the things that we love," he said.

He was initially concerned about the impact upon the marketing company he owns, but it now has several staff working remotely.

"We've been able to hire up to 10 staff. People from Nelson, Christchurch, all the way to Great Barrier Island."

Raats' only concern about the move is a common gripe within the region: "The traffic sucks."

While the region's population has increased, that's put pressure on the regions infrastructure – particularly the roads and healthcare.

Commercial businessman Andrew Spitall wasn't surprised by the Census numbers, saying there was a build-up in demand for housing across the region which took off recently.

"It's unbelievable, you know. We hit the market at the right time... Fifteen years of growth was done in five years."

In 2017, the large fields of Richmond West were largely empty but now they are filled by a huge development which will eventually boast around 1500 homes.

"At the height of it, we were pre-selling house and land packages 18 months out and we would sell 25 in four to five minutes – and we'd have multiple offers on them," Spitall said.

Local businesses like Connings Food Market have benefited from the growth. Ben Conning said a lot has changed since the Appleby site first opened in 2017.

"Yeah, it's definitely boomed. Like we had fields on our back doorstep going right through to Richmond and now we have families living right there.

"There's definitely been a big shift, probably, in the diversity of the region."

Tasman is the second oldest region in the country after the West Coast, with an average age of 46 years old.

There are now 57,807 people in Tasman with the vast majority – 91% – being European. But the region is growing in diversity fast, with around one in 10 people now identifying as Māori – a 26% increase on the last Census.

The Asian population grew by 58% to 2298 people, while the Pasifika population grew by 75% to 1509.

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