Auckland’s burgeoning rental demand parallels Aussie scene

Anecdotal evidence from Auckland landlords supports the proposition that there is a dearth of rental accommodation available. Property investor Lee Whiley described letting one of his inner suburbs properties recently as totally chaotic.

“In my 25 years experience in the business I have never seen a response anything like it. It was complete chaos with everyone trying to get to the front of the queue.”

A recent report from the Real Estate Institute of Australia says with the gradual slowing in borrowing for investment properties as investors move out of the property market into investments in other asset classes, rental markets are set to tighten even further.

Given relatively low yields in Australia compared to New Zealand, particularly in the major centres, the Crockers report says it is unsurprising that Australian investors are deserting property investments in favour of other options.

While rental levels in Auckland’s inner suburbs mirror those of comparable parts of Sydney, in the middle city and more distant suburbs, they are higher than Sydney’s.

The imminent KiwiSaver scheme designed to provide assistance to first homeowners is only available after they have saved for some years, and is unlikely to significantly influence the rental market for some time, the report predicts.