Carmen Hall: Safe as houses Bay of Plenty comes up trumps

The Bay of Plenty is holding its own while the outlook for the housing market remains positive. Photo / File

COMMENT:

I often worry about the value of my house and if I sold it whether I would make any capital gain. I also worry about the economy as I am quite dependent on it for my livelihood.

I have had some sleepless nights lately including through the Covid lockdown. Property is a hot topic especially since so many Kiwis have got their life savings riding on it.

And while worrying about money is nothing new, I think the pandemic has made a lot more people think about it. My spending habits have been slashed and I find myself watching my KiwiSaver.

There is no doubt we are in tough economic times and ANZ chief economist Sharon Zollner says the bank believes the recession is just starting.

Westpac economist Westpac industry economist Paul Clark agrees and says the effects will be severe and while Tauranga was likely to perform better than Rotorua due to its larger investment into tourism - as a whole we fared better than other regions.

Its quarterly confidence survey shows just 3 per cent of households in the Bay of Plenty expected economic conditions to improve over the coming year.

But it is not all bad news because the only region to rate higher was the Hawke's Bay.

Clark says our region is lucky because it has diverse industries to fall back on including agriculture, forestry - and kiwifruit, which is celebrating another record harvest.

It was also pleasing to see the latest data from One Roof and Valocity shows average house prices in the Bay of Plenty have increased by 1.5 per cent despite the financial impact of Covid. Rotorua climbed by 4.5 per cent and Tauranga more or less held its own with a slip of 0.3 per cent.

The property market is a major economic driver in both cities and while agents are reluctant to make any further 2020 predictions, One Roof editor Owen Vaughan believes the outlook remains bright.

I think now I will take a deep breath and have faith that I am fortunate to live in the Bay of Plenty which continues to punch above its weight when the chips are down.

Long may it last.