NZ houses unaffordable for many

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NZ houses unaffordable for many

3News NZ

The median house price across the country is 5.2 times the median wage

The median house price across the country is 5.2 times the median wage

Yesterday house prices hit another high.

To say house prices in New Zealand are overvalued is to state the blindingly obvious.

According to a survey by Demographia, the median house price across the country is 5.2 times the median wage - less affordable than all our major trading partners except Australia.

In Auckland prices are 6.4 times the median household income - one of the highest rates in the world, and more expensive than both Los Angeles and New York.

Anything over three times is considered unaffordable.

Almost everyone agrees this is a major problem that's locking a whole generation out of the housing market and sending many more overseas.

So what can be done about it?

Tristram Clayton looks at why prices are so high and what can be done to bring them down.

Watch the video to see his report.

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Comments

8/02/2013 1:14:21 p.m.

john wrote:

im just building a new house in the uk it is a 4bed 2 ensuites study kitchen/diner/lounge and sitting room with double garage in a good location it will cost me total including air fares etc all labour 220k pounds and will be worth 440k pounds and so you know the land cost 100k and the government will give me back 20% vat on the goods vat is the same as gst

8/02/2013 1:01:07 p.m.

john wrote:

i can build 2x 3bed houses in the the uk for $400k nz dollars =200k pounds this is because i think fletcher building imports and keep the prices high the councils here make there fees just stupidly high i.e. resource consent also my houses have a 10 year insurance backed garrentee included and they are built with central heating and are built to last in excess of a hundred years +

15/12/2012 3:25:55 p.m.

iain wrote:

just rang the council to look at a building consent to repair a balcony/deck. materials on deck 3-4k building consent 3-5k engineering 1-2k council required drawings 1-2k. needless to say, the deck will be repaired- just wont be legal. it will be safe as a engineer will check it.

2/10/2012 4:06:39 p.m.

Peter wrote:

People need to get real about costs. Look, for example, at the size of these houses shown in this video. Two storey, multi bathroom jobs.Totally unecessary when there may be only couples occupying some of these houses. People need to go smaller. Not bigger.It's all about wants,not needs. I have no sympathy for the whingers who want it all.

13/08/2012 4:33:55 p.m.

Graeme wrote:

Want to know why house prices in NZ will fall 40% in the next ten years or so - Google Steve Keen

12/08/2012 10:28:29 a.m.

John wrote:

No one mentioned the ridiculous cost of building materials in NZ controlled by the near monopoly wholesalers Fletchers and Carter Holt Harvey. A piece of 12mm plywood in the US is half the price. And that's stuff is made here. Looks like there's a 100% markup on everything that enters the country. And they will be creaming it in CHC!! Whats this $50000 in consents fee ? Consents in Nelson cost about $3000. Sounds like the developer has passed his development impact fee on to the user which is what he used to have to pay. Someone is getting very rich and who gets the money from the infrastructure projects? It all goes back to building materials!!

12/08/2012 10:27:20 a.m.

John wrote:

No one mentioned the ridiculous cost of building materials in NZ controlled by the near monopoly wholesalers Fletchers and Carter Holt Harvey. A piece of 12mm plywood in the US is half the price. And that's stuff is made here. Looks like there's a 100% markup on everything that enters the country. And they will be creaming it in CHC!! Whats this $50000 in consents fee ? Consents in Nelson cost about $3000. Sounds like the developer has passed his development impact fee on to the user which is what he used to have to pay. Someone is getting very rich and who gets the money from the infrastructure projects? It all goes back to building materials!!

11/08/2012 10:53:54 p.m.

Stephen Dickson wrote:

I'll start with Brash, he is an idiot, but we all know that. Go for a drive around the Taieri and have a look at development, 5-10 acre blocks that produce nothing now and cost a fortune, same goes for many other areas around Otago. Do we really need a 3,4,500 square metre house? NO. But kiwi's are building them.

11/08/2012 5:57:48 p.m.

mr smart wrote:

i suggest renting and instead buying gold and silver and storing food. when the usa debt becomes unsustainable the outlook will be bleak and any money left over will transfer into gold, silver. house prices are going to deflate as fast as they inflated.

11/08/2012 12:58:32 p.m.

John wrote:

the "NZ is less than 1% urbanised is disingenuous".First you have to select out the uninhabitable areas (remember Taupo is a super volcano which erupts on average every 900 years).Britain is only about 8% urbanised but has far fewer mountains and yet people leave to get away from all that.