Home loans stories
Higher borrowing costs are cooling sales and slowing price growth, with more than half of NZ mortgages set to reset this year.
Mortgage repayments now absorb nearly half of household income, as record house prices and weaker wages push affordability to fresh lows.
Higher mortgage rates and tighter lending rules are already cooling New Zealand’s housing market, with investor demand slipping further.
Higher mortgage costs are unlikely to deter first-time buyers while rents keep climbing and remain above many monthly loan repayments.
Online property traffic is staying strong during New Zealand's Level 4 lockdown, as buyers browse listings and sellers turn to virtual appraisals.
Borrowers face tighter lending rules as the Reserve Bank moves to curb risky loans amid house values rising 1.8% in July.
Rising mortgage rates and tax changes are set to cool sales, but CoreLogic says a full property downturn still looks unlikely.
Record-low inventory is pushing New Zealand house prices higher, leaving first-time buyers with fewer affordable options.
Government help may be needed as first-time purchasers’ share of the market falls to its lowest level since 2018, CoreLogic says.
Record prices and a 14-year sales high show New Zealand's housing market is still racing ahead despite tighter lending rules and tax changes.
Investor demand is set to ease as tax changes and tighter lending curbs threaten to cool the market, though prices are still rising fast.
Average household incomes rose just 1.3% last quarter, leaving New Zealand house prices at their least affordable level since records began in 2004.
House prices are likely to cool after the Reserve Bank reinstated loan-to-value curbs from 1 March amid stability concerns.
New Zealand home values rose 2.2% in January as tight supply and low rates drove a rebound in Christchurch, Auckland and Queenstown.
House prices could surge 30 per cent in three years unless regulators curb lending as ultra-low rates fuel debt and investor demand.
House buyers and investors face tighter mortgage rules from 1 March as the Reserve Bank warns high-LVR lending is rising again.
New Zealand’s housing boom lifted values in almost every main centre, with Auckland now boasting 117 suburbs above the NZD $1 million mark.
Nationwide house prices climbed 1.3% in October as low rates and scarce listings kept demand ahead of supply.
Tighter lending criteria and renewed virus restrictions are likely to cool mortgage demand after July’s NZD $6.6 billion peak.
Property activity is likely to soften as recession, rising unemployment and a spring listings surge test demand in coming months.
