No-one thought it would be anything other than just a temporary thing.
Christchurch's earthquake-damaged homes would be fixed or rebuilt, and things would return to normal.
But with insurers cashing out claims and repair work expensive, the real estate landscape has changed.
Many damaged homes are not just liveable but saleable, and are selling and re-selling. Insurance payouts are bankrolling windfalls for both buyers and sellers.
There is no public database and details of damage and quake claims are privately held. So authorities, valuers, insurers and real estate agents are having to adjust.
"This is going to be an on-going problem that Canterbury will have for years to come," says property valuer Natalie Edwards, who owns Urban Edge Valuations.
Many of the homes are being "legitimately and properly" repaired, she says. Buyers include builders, landlords, and homeowners excited by a cheap purchasing option.
But some people will plaster over the cracks, and those houses may catch later buyers unawares, Edwards says.
"The problems come about when someone doesn't know the history of the home — where there's no transparency of information.
"It will just get worse as time goes on. There are large parts of the city with homes that will never get repaired — they're not worth the money to repair."
She recommends buyers take nothing for granted and get an an engineering report, not just a building report.
"People can be very devious. If you can sell something for reasonable money and don't have to disclose information and that's to your advantage, then people will do it."
Red flags for valuers that a home may not be what it seems, Edwards says, are a discounted previous price, references to damage in previous advertising, or a lack of detailed paperwork or consents.
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