Housing affordability better for renters, worse for Auckland buyers: new government figures

Five years after it was commissioned, a quarterly housing affordability measure was revealed today by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. Photo / Hagen Hopkins

Renters are finding housing more affordable but the plight of first-home buyers in Auckland has worsened, new government figures show.

Five years after it was commissioned, a quarterly housing affordability measure was revealed today by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

"The findings of this first housing affordability measure show that housing is more affordable for renters than for first-home buyers. They also confirm that the Auckland market continues to be challenging for first-home buyers," the ministry said.

The measure, compiled from a range of government and private sector data, gave results for renters and buyers in Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury and nationally.

The figures were flat or falling, except for Auckland house buyers.

But the measure's rent chart fell in all areas, including Auckland.

The measure examines household incomes, subtracts the cost of buying or renting and compares that to a 2013 benchmark to track affordability over time.

Cabinet asked for an official measure to be created in 2012 and the first data is from March 2003 to June, 2015, so is already almost two years out of date.

The ministry said it gave a more accurate picture of how much New Zealanders spend on housing and tracks whether housing is becoming more or less affordable over time for renters and aspiring first home buyers.

Ministry deputy chief executive of building, resources and markets, Chris Bunny, said the measure was important to give more accurate information about housing.

"The measure provides a picture of shifts in affordability, broken down by local council and by ward in Auckland. This robust measurement of how much income households have left after their basic household costs have been paid will inform policies and decisions for Kiwis and their housing," Bunny said.

Changes can be made to the new measure which was an "experimental statistical series, which means it will continue to be refined to ensure it remains fit-for-purpose and that results are robust and meaningful. We will work with Statistics New Zealand to refine the measure and get it adopted as part of the official statistics system."

The measure would be used by the Government and others to make decisions about housing, he said.

Auckland's biggest residential property management business, Barfoot & Thompson, this week released its quarterly data from January to March, showing rents overall rose 4.6 per cent, and rents on newly let properties rose 7 per cent.

Read more about the measure here: