Property Market stories
Vacancies are at multi-year lows nationwide as booming logistics demand and tight land supply push industrial rents and values higher.
Desirable school zones are propping up prices and fuelling buyer demand as families hunt for homes with stronger future resale prospects.
Most New Zealanders want flood-risk homes disclosed, as a survey warns opaque climate messaging could damage trust across property markets.
Rising costs, labour shortages and patchy demand are forcing trades firms to adapt fast as construction failures mount and projects stay funded.
Affordable Southland is drawing first home buyers and investors, with Invercargill’s median house price hitting a record NZD $488,000 in August.
Rising mortgage rates and inflation are still weighing on New Zealand property sales, though agents are seeing more first-home buyers returning.
Softening house prices could tempt vendors to go private, but agents still deliver about 15% more on average, Century 21 says.
Higher urban land costs and borrowing pressures have driven New Zealand house prices up for two decades, though reforms may ease them.
A third of the 400 apartments are already occupied as the 59-level Southbank tower opens, signalling stronger demand for rental stock in Melbourne.
Industrial rents are being pushed higher by record-low vacancy, as office and retail markets in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch tighten.
Higher inflation and 30-year-high interest rates are forcing landlords and tenants to renegotiate rent formulas as costs and vacancies diverge.
Materials shortages and labour pressures have pushed CoreLogic’s residential construction index to its steepest annual rise since late 2012.
Lifting price caps is expected to unlock stalled Auckland projects after the lender set aside GBP £600 million for about 1,000 homes.
A voluntary new tool will let property groups measure social sustainability impacts across construction projects, precincts and assets.
Demand is still holding up this winter, with first-home buyers helped by easier deposit rules and lending changes despite softer sales.
Higher mortgage costs and tighter lending are set to keep house prices under pressure, with June marking a third straight monthly fall.
Lower entry-level house prices and wider government support are nudging first-home buyers closer to ownership despite rising rates.
The city was the only New Zealand region to post an annual fall, with sales also down 38.3% as buyers paused amid higher rates.
Borrowers face higher mortgage costs and further house price weakness as the Reserve Bank signals the OCR may peak around 4% by mid-2023.
Industry groups say Labor’s policies could ease affordability pressures after its weekend win made housing reforms more likely.
