Bay of Plenty rents overtake Auckland again as the most expensive
Tuesday, 21 May 2024
Bay of Plenty has become the most expensive place in the country to rent, overtaking Auckland for the second time in six months, according to latest Trade Me data.
Tauranga rents are now at a record $730 median.
The national median rental price is unchanged from the previous months, with some regions seeing rents decrease as demand falls coming up to winter.
It’s a race to the top no-one wants to win. The Bay of Plenty is again the most expensive place to rent in Aotearoa, overtaking Auckland for the second time in six months, although the median national rental price is unchanged from the previous month, according to Trade Me's latest figures.
The median rent in the Bay of Plenty was $690 in April, up 0.7% compared with March, edging ever closer to breaking the $700 mark.
It’s the second time since December 2023 the region has knocked Tāmaki Makaurau off the top spot.
Trade Me director of property sales Gavin Lloyd said its bad news for renters in the region.
'It's particularly challenging in Tauranga: the median rent is now at a record $730 which is a significant chunk of money for a family on the average wage. That's the third priciest in the country, behind Auckland's North Shore at $740 and Queenstown Lakes and Wanaka at $950.“
Tauranga rent was even higher, at a record $730 median, he said.
'While we've certainly seen sharper rent hikes in the past, this comes at a time where rents are already at record highs, so no doubt many households will be worried about what this means for their back pocket,' he said.
The common element to places with increasing high rents was desirability, combined with lack of supply, he said.
'With these kinds of areas, there are some pretty big draw cards. Larger properties, proximity to the water and other kinds of outdoor activities. But that space has the trade off that these areas tend to be quite low density meaning there just aren't enough places for people to live.'
It’s better news across the motu.
National median rent in April was flat compared with March, remaining at $650, representing the sixth time in the past year that rents have remained flat month to month.
'For a few months now we've seen supply catching up with demand and it looks like we might now be starting to see those shifts,' said Lloyd.
'That trend is continuing with an 8 per cent increase in supply and an 8 per cent decrease in demand from March to April. This is a positive sign for renters and means we'll likely see more stable rents in the near to medium term,' he added.
Lloyd said that this can be attributed to a change in market forces.
'April marks the fourth consecutive month where supply has actually increased, and the third consecutive month where demand has fallen. It looks like the market is rebalancing,' he said.
Many regions saw prices dip slightly in April.
The median rent in Nelson/Tasman fell by 3.4% when compared with March, to $570.
Rents in Auckland, Northland, Hawkes Bay and Manwatū/Whanganui all fell by between 1.4% and 1.8% from March to April, while Canterbury and Southland saw no change.
Lloyd said that although it's not unusual to see prices stagnate or dip heading into the colder months, this demonstrates that demand is still outpacing supply in some regions.
'It is typical for demand to taper off heading into winter, but this year it does appear that supply still has some catching up to do in some regions which is why we're seeing a bit of inconsistency with rents across the motu,' he said.