Outer Auckland leads rent growth

Barfoot & Thompson has just released its quarterly rental update and it shows that average weekly rents in Auckland only increased slightly in the first three months of 2016.

The data shows that average weekly rents across all tenancies increased by just 1.4%, as compared to the last quarter of 2015.

They were up by 5.3% when compared to the same period in 2015, but average weekly rents in March 2016 alone were up 5.8% year-on-year.

Barfoot & Thompson’s Will Alexander said the average weekly rent for a three bedroom property, which is the property type rented most, was now $510.

“It topped the $500 mark in October last year and has grown by a dollar or two each month since, which is a 5.6% year-on-year increase from $486.”

However, average weekly rents for property types across the board were up by around 5% year-on-year.

One bedroom properties rose by 4.8% (from $316 to $331), two bedroom properties by 6.3% (from $398 to $423), four bedroom properties by 5.1% (from $614 to $644) and five plus bedroom properties by 5.8% (from $755 to $791).

Alexander said actual rental prices are also impacted by a property’s location and other factors, which means properties closer to the city demand higher price points.

But the agency was observing significant percentage increases in outlying suburbs, he said.

For example, Rodney and the Franklin and rural Manukau area continue to show the fastest growth in average weekly rental prices.

Over the past 12 months, there was an 8.4% increase in Franklin and Manukau and a 7.8% increase in Rodney.

“While these are typically some of the more affordable areas to rent in, comparative rental price increases are now significantly above the average,” Alexander said.

“The prices in the Franklin and rural Manukau area are now getting closer to the averages currently seen in South Auckland.

“These increases suggest that Aucklanders are struggling to find suitable properties in closer suburbs, or are happy to travel further afield to find the right home at the right price.”

The data shows demand for rental properties has been strong this year. For example, in March the number of new tenancies was up 15% on 2015.

Alexander said that demand is set to stay robust.

“Based on past figures the next peaks in activity will likely be either side of mid-year, in May and again in August – traditionally our busiest period.”