| Finding a home |
| You could easily end up spending the rest of your life doing research. But sooner or later you've got to put all that theory into practice and look for your very own 'quarter acre paradise'. If it all seems too daunting remember, millions of home owners have walked in your shoes before. And they all got through it somehow. |
October could best be described as a month of consolidation, with the Auckland median sales price unchanged at $455,000 and sales numbers down only slightly on the previous month. Meanwhile, commentators increasingly report a shortage of housing stock for sale. The national median price continued its rise, reaching a new peak in October of $355,000 : $3,000 ahead of the previous high recorded in November 2007.
As the Local Government (Auckland Reorganisation) Bill wends its way through parliament, communities are becoming more vocal in their dissent. Franklin-ites are unhappy at the prospect of being swallowed by Auckland, Waitakere Mayor Bob Harvey was reportedly resigned to being the last mayor of his beloved city, while Rodney residents seemed divided.
If you had $450,000 to spend on a house, where would you buy? The answer will vary wildly depending on where you work, where you grew up, where your friends are and your lifestyle.
Despite the RBNZ's signalled intention to keep the OCR low well into next year, there has been a sustained upward creep in long-term fixed mortgage rates. Talk from the RBNZ is no match for global interest rate dynamics.
In previous editions we focused on the two cities, Manukau and Waitakere which will soon form part of the Auckland SuperCity. In this edition, we focus on Auckland City, the most populous part of the SuperCity and perhaps the least geographically diverse.
Property sales plunge in January
15 Feb 10
