The age-old adage of "owning your own piece of dirt" in New Zealand is becoming more of a fairy tale than a reality for many first-time home buyers in Whangarei, as the gap between house prices and incomes widens.
Tuesday, August 23rd 2005, 7:32AM
by The Landlord
Potential new home buyers in the district are having to face long term renting as affordability continues to decrease at an alarming rate, according to the AMP New Zealand Home Affordability Index released last week.
The key points from the June index were that as the housing market enters the fifth year of sustained growth, rising house prices remain the principle driver of declining affordability.
On an annual basis all 11 regions recorded a decline in home affordability for the fourth consecutive quarter, Taranaki leading with a 51.3 percent decline, followed by Northland with a 45.6 percent fall. Meanwhile, the median dwelling price lifted 35.5 percent over the same period.
The latest QV Valuation for the 12 months to July this year also shows that property values in the Whangarei district are rising at an annual rate of 25.2 percent, up 1.3 percent on the year to June. The average price of house in the district is $266,109.
