As flood damage forced some residents to move out of South Dunedin, Valerie Brown moved in.
Ms Brown shifted into her newly finished house in Bay View Rd last week, two days after the flood.
The house was built under new building regulations which require properties to be constructed higher off the ground, Mrs Brown said.
The regulations had meant building the home slightly elevated had cost more, which did not impress the property's developer, but it had protected the house from flooding like that at neighbouring properties.
Next door it was a completely different story.
Builders were yesterday stripping out a home which had been extensively flooded. It had been occupied by people with intellectual disabilities.
Dave Wootton Builder employee Luke Cunliffe said it could be months before residents could return, with extensive drying out and refurbishing work to be done.
