"In March this year it peaked at a weekly rent of $495 to surpass Auckland, but across the remainder of 2015 we've seen rents ease right back and Christchurch tenants are now being asked to pay $3400 less a year."
The Trade Me Property Rental Price Index measures trends in median weekly rents for residential properties on Trade Me Property rented out by real estate property managers and private landlords over the past month. Around 11,000 rental properties are let via Trade Me Property each month.
The figures coincide with surge in Auckland residential rental applications.
Barfoot & Thompson said applications rose 28 per cent last month compared to July, signalling a possible early start to the summer rental season.
Kiri Barfoot, who overseas Barfoot & Thompson's property management services, said the high number of applications was unusual at this time of the year and online rental property searches also rose 26 per cent between July and August.
"This signals an early start to the shifting season, when tenants begin to look elsewhere for properties that might better suit their needs. It's a typical spring trend, but we are seeing it take hold earlier each year as people try and get in ahead of the crowds. It's likely activity will also peak earlier this year - prior to, rather than after, the Christmas holidays," she said.
Feedback from property managers indicated many tenants were thinking ahead to next winter and wanting warm and dry homes.
"Homes with insulation and efficient heating, such as heat pumps are highly sought after and we encourage our landlords to upgrade their properties in this way," she said.
The average weekly rent across Auckland last month increased $4 between July and August, to $496. That is a rise of less than 1 per cent between the two months and just 6 per cent year-on-year, from $467 in August last year.
Barfoots manage more than 13,000 rental properties.