pippalonghorn

just got an article through the post regarding house prices in NZ. The national median is upto $390,000, Malborough and Canterbury included. In August there were 365 properties sold for over $1,000,000. This is nation wide not just Auckland. The national median price has risen $20,000 compared to August 2012.

Qoute "there is a feel that the sales through spring will be a lot stronger as there appears to be more properties coming on to the market".

Quote " it will be interesting to see what the impact of the Reserve Banks new lending policy will have on the market. We are already seeing second tier lenders looking to make up the difference for buyers who miss out on 80%+ loans. Once this is clearer we would expect to see the spring market show more strength and numbers increase".

sr71

You don't quite grasp the concept of how market economics work do you.

davros1984

Would beg to differ - certainly as the market here is no longer viable for first-time buyers (or anyone with at least half a brain).

sr71

The housing market may have a significant barrier to entry in that you need a lot of money, but it is not a rip-off if there are buyers "willing" to pay the price.

Because you can't afford a brand new Rolls Royce it doesn't make it a rip-off.

I still argue that there are properties available to first home buyers, it's just that they are still being very picky about where they want to live. No different from anywhere in the world.

In Melbourne and Sydney first home buyers are forced out into suburbia, 30-80km away from the CBD. Same in the US and the UK.

davros1984

I'm sorry but unless you've had your head under a large rock for the past 2-3 years you'll have read and have seen that Auckland's house prices have skyrocketed out of control, far beyond the average Kiwi families budget.

Most young couples and families would happily live 30,50,80km away, however... with such poor transport infrastructure the idea of a 2-hour commute each way is ridiculous. When the place is more organised and they have more of these...

going and buying a new place for a good price in somewhere like Pokeno suddenly becomes a realistic option.

That is 20-25 years away.

marblep

Davros, you need to open up your eyes. You are so obsessed with central auckland. I would offer you advice but you're expecting unreal stuff now. You need to get a grip on what is realistic.

Perhaps it's time for you to go home? you rave about the house prices. Go and get a lovely cheap semi. It's what you want. All the best.

sr71

5% increase isn't particularly fantastic compared to other investment vehicles.

Charismatic

Lets see them service that debt when retail interest rates climb.

If this bubble can be stopped before we crash it will be the reserve bank curtailing cheap money. If this goes south because the reserve bank sat on their hands most blame should land at the reserve banks feet.

jmh

According to Zoopla my UK property has gone up in value by 6% in the past year. Yay me!!

pippalonghorn

I was actually shocked at the 365 properties selling in August for over $1,000,000.

The house prices are too high for first time buyers and the banks are not helping. Now when I say first time buyer I do not mean myself, I mean the poor younger generation who were born here and probably have no means of moving to Australia or anywhere else. How are they going to cope, especially if mam or dad dont have a spare $100,000 in their bank account.

pippalonghorn

Thats really not the answer is it?

Snap Shot

Which just about says it all about people who are flying into huge mortgages for so -so properties.

Those sort of people are the first to complain when the bubble bursts. Maybe they believe in magic.

davros1984

I believe my eyes are wide open. Those who think Auckland has affordable family housing are the ones with their eyes shut.

My line of work is in IT, specifically infrastructure, planning and design. Thus, 99% of the job opportunities in my field, especially here in NZ are in central Auckland or Wellington. Heck - a lot of the IT jobs that were on the N. Shore have gone south of the bridge now are are in the central city.

I don't think I am being unrealistic, I am prepared to live 30,50 or 80k's out and commute, so long as commuting is actually reasonable and doesn't add 4 hours to your day, I may as well go back to Epsom or Reigate if I want that! One thing I am considering is the ferry service from the Coromandel.

Realistically, I have to accept that until the government either get building affordable homes in central, or add rail to the outskirts of Auckland, I cannot buy a house here. Whilst that is not the start and end of everything, there is a reason why I work long hours, service a student loan and save. After 11 years of renting - I'm tired of it.

You are right in what you say, hence why I am planning a move home. Where you can get a 30-40-50K GBP job and buy a nice house for 140-180K GBP - far more realistic! At the same time there is cheap travel, Europe and many more accessible places on the doorstep.

I love New Zealand, I have a good life here and I can't explain how frustrating it is that me and my partner will have to go home despite doing well for ourselves here and that I actually have a job that I like!

To the person who talked about rolls-royce cars being a rip off, that really isn't the point. A wooden shed with a tin roof certainly is not a rolls in the housing world and to be paying 600-800K for one is certain madness.

I see my only other option to stay in NZ is to do a career change so that I can live in the cheaper regions of NZ.

Stormer999

Sorry Davros but for 140/180k £ you were already looking at cheaper regions of the UK, so just stay here, or you could buy our little bungalow in Warwickshire for it's recent valuation of £365k, but you had better be quick as the estate agent informs me this is a slow selling period window and in the new year they are expecting UK house prices to take off.

Bo-Jangles

Cheaper areas? Like South East England?

There's no end of choice if places within thirty minutes commute of central London for around £180k.