NZ house values rise at fastest pace in 15 months
NZ house values rise at fastest pace in 15 months, while Auckland prices jump most in 11 years: QV
By Suze Metherell
June 9 (BusinessDesk) - New Zealand
residential property values increased at their fastest
annual pace in over a year, as Auckland housing prices clock
the biggest gain in over a decade, fuelled by record
migration and low interest rates.
National property
values rose 9 percent in the 12 months ended May 31, the
fastest pace in 15 months and accelerating from 8.3 percent
in April, according to state-owned value Quotable Value.
Meanwhile values in Auckland, the country's most populous
city, rose 16.1 percent in May, the fastest pace in 11 years
and speeding up from April's 14.6 percent gain.
The
country's annual migration has broken records for nine
consecutive months as people are lured by the nation's
brighter economic prospects, recording a net gain of 56,800
migrants in the year through April. Half of the inflow are
heading to Auckland, where an under-supply of housing has
pushed prices to record levels. Meanwhile, the official cash
rate remains on hold, as the Reserve Bank looks to cool
Auckland's bubbling housing market using other macro
prudential tools.
“The usual winter downturn does
not seem to have dampened demand as high net migration,
relatively low interest rates and a constrained housing
supply continue to fuel demand in the Auckland market,” QV
national spokeswoman Andrea Rush said. “This demand is
also now spreading to provincial centres nearer to Auckland
with values up in Tauranga, Hamilton, Cambridge, Pokeno and
towns in the Hauraki District.”
Property values in
Hamilton and Tauranga both increased 4.1 percent
year-on-year, as demand for Auckland spilled over, QV said.
Wellington property values overall increased 2.6 percent year-on-year, but central, east and south Wellington recorded a decline, offset by gains in Lower and Upper Hutt and Porirua. Christchurch values increased 3.8 percent in the year.
(BusinessDesk)