Average Auckland rents almost hit $600

AUCKLAND: Rents in New Zealand’s biggest city are forecast to hit a record $600 a week.

Kiri Barfoot, a director of property management and agency Barfoot & Thompson, said Auckland average rents were 2.5% higher in last year’s final quarter compared with 2018’s final quarter and she expected rents would keep rising.

‘‘The average weekly rent for an Auckland home now sits at $582 and the current annual increase of around 3% will see it reach the $600 mark within the year,’’ she said.

Ms Barfoot said the pace of Auckland rent rises slowed last year. The lowest rise was in the last three months of the year.

‘‘The average weekly price tag for a rental property in Auckland during the October to December quarter was just 2.5% higher than it was during the same time last year.

‘‘This means a renter will have paid around $15 more per week in December 2019, than in December 2018.’’

Last year, the rate of rent increases fell below 3% for the first time in many years, with figures representing an annual rent rise of about $16 a week to $18 a week for the average property.

The 2018 increase was closer to $20 a week yearonyear, and it was well above $20 a week throughout 2017, she said.

She expected a big change in 2020. Auckland had a considerable range of average rents within particular property sizes and locations across the city, she said.

‘‘Larger properties in the central and eastern suburbs set renters back over $1000 a week on average this quarter, while most onebedroom properties across the city came in under $400, at an average of $384,’’ she said. One and twobedroom homes had higher rent rises compared with the rest of the market. Larger properties had lower increases, something that was likely to persist in the coming year, she said.

South Auckland, Franklin and rural Manukau properties had the highest rates of increase compared with other areas of the city.

Rodney was the only area to have a higher rate of increase during the last quarter of 2020, moving from 2.2% to 2.8%. Rent growth was lowest in the central and eastern suburbs.