Tararua house prices soaring

Tararua house prices are among the fastest growing in New Zealand, as squeezed buyers from neighbouring regions seek to snap up the district’s relatively affordable homes.

QV valuer Jason Hockly says the valuation company’s figures show that while the national housing market is cooling, provincial markets, such as Manawatu¯ -Whanganui, are still red hot.

A strong and steady growth in house values continued across the region last month, particularly in Tararua, which had the country’s third-fastest annual growth in average house prices.

After a long slump following the 2008 recession, Tararua had seen a consistent double-digit growth in house prices for the past few years, as everyone from first-home buyers to retirees sought cheaper options, Hockly said.

QV found although Tararua house prices were some of Manawtu¯ -Whanganui’s cheapest, with an average value of $224,524, they’ve shot up 21.3 per cent since last February, almost double the annual price growth of the region’s other areas.

Hockly said Tararua’s rapidly rising prices were a result of basic economics.

‘‘There’s just too much demand coming from all sectors – first-home buyers, investors, developers. There’s simply not enough houses.’

Buyers sick of missing out in Palmerston North, where average values hit $434,362 in February, have been spilling to the surrounding areas for a few years.

Those buyers had until now mostly turned to Feilding, where the average is $361,311, and Horowhenua, with a $346,858 average value, Hockly said.

And, like most provincial markets, all of Manawatu¯ Whanganui saw a growth in firsthome buyers, who are making ever-bigger offers because they fear being locked out of the market.