Property

Cheaper to rent than buy: Economist

New Zealand Institute of Economic Research economist Shamubeel Eaqub says his friends don't listen to him when he tells them not to buy houses.

Friday, July 20th 2012

The 31-year-old told the Herald on Sunday that he had never wanted to buy his own house and was happy to rent.

"Houses are very expensive compared to renting."

He said in the areas he wanted to live, it was much cheaper to rent a $1 million house than to service a mortgage on one.

He said he and his wife invested the money they saved by renting so that they could provide for their retirement.

"New Zealanders' obsession with property is madness."

But David Kneebone, executive director at the Commission for Financial Literacy and Retirement Income, said for the majority of New Zealanders who were not as financially savvy as Eaqub, not owning a house at retirement age could leave them vulnerable.

"If you're paying rent in retirement, and are reliant just on New Zealand super, your standard of living is going to be considerably different to if you were living in a mortgage-free home."

He said a freehold home at retirement age was an important goal for most New Zealanders.

Kneebone gave the example of a property that would rent for $800 a fortnight, with a mortgage of $1500.

"The challenge is, can you save the $700 difference and invest it?"

People saving and renting would need to be sure they would never dip into the pot, Kneebone said.

He said it was hard to predict what would happen in the real estate market. It was possible that in a few years rents would have increased markedly, while a mortgage payment taken out in 2012 might not.

He said homeowners also had an asset that could appreciate in value more than other assets and having the mortgage payment to meet reined in the part of human nature that liked to satisfy short-term needs.

"The mortgage payment is good for us, it happens automatically, reducing debt. Can you maintain the discipline over a lifetime of being a renter to build up that sum? If you can, go for it."

Comments

No comments yet

Most Read

Unity First Home Buyer special 3.99
ICBC 4.25
SBS FirstHome Combo 4.29
Co-operative Bank - First Home Special 4.35
Co-operative Bank - Owner Occ 4.45
TSB Special 4.49
ANZ Special 4.49
ASB Bank 4.49
SBS Bank Special 4.49
Unity Special 4.49
Westpac Special 4.49
TSB Special 4.00
SBS Bank Special 4.49
Kainga Ora 4.49
Kiwibank Special 4.49
Nelson Building Society 4.59
ICBC 4.59
Unity Special 4.65
BNZ - Std 4.69
ANZ Special 4.69
Westpac Special 4.75
ASB Bank 4.75
SBS Bank Special 4.99
ICBC 4.99
Kainga Ora 5.15
Westpac Special 5.29
BNZ - Std 5.29
Kiwibank Special 5.39
TSB Special 5.39
ASB Bank 5.45
AIA - Go Home Loans 5.45
Co-operative Bank - Owner Occ 5.49
SBS Bank 5.59
SBS FirstHome Combo 3.29
AIA - Back My Build 3.34
SBS Construction lending for FHB 3.74
CFML 321 Loans 3.95
Co-operative Bank - Owner Occ 4.99
Co-operative Bank - Standard 4.99
Heartland Bank - Online 5.30
ICBC 5.39
Kiwibank - Offset 5.65
Kiwibank 5.65
ANZ 5.69

More Stories

Wednesday, January 07th 2026

Queenstown not off the radar for first home buyers

First home buyers are not being deterred by Queenstown’s soaring house prices.

Record levels of first home buyers taking out low deposit loans

Tuesday, December 23rd 2025

Record levels of first home buyers taking out low deposit loans

About half of all first home buyer lending has been done at a less than 20% deposit in recent months.

Buyers sitting on the sidelines in best time to buy in a decade

Thursday, December 04th 2025

Buyers sitting on the sidelines in best time to buy in a decade

Stable house prices, low interest rates and plenty of houses to choose from are still not enticing buyers.

Differing views on 50-year mortgage

Tuesday, December 02nd 2025

Differing views on 50-year mortgage

US president Donald Trump recently raised the idea of 50 year mortgages; but New Zealand advisers say such long loans won’t take off in New Zealand.