Rental shortage hitting hard

Rotorua has a rental shortage.

Rotorua is experiencing a chronic shortage of good rental housing, with more people coming in and fewer people leaving the area, property managers say.

"It is certainly something we are experiencing, we have never been so low in vacancies, people just don't seem to be moving the way they used to," Dave Crossley from First National Real Estate Rotorua said.

"Usually this time of year is busy. We are having a lot of inquiries but we can't help a lot of people.

"People are not moving out," he said.

Rotorua Rentals principal Richard Evans is also experiencing a shortage of available homes.

"The shortage of rentals in Rotorua at the moment is chronic, I only have seven empty houses at the moment, it's been so busy between Christmas and New Year."

Pam Jones Property Management owner Pam Jones said as many as seven families were interested in one house, and she was having to choose between them.

"With good houses I am having to choose between people. The average areas are sitting, decent three bedrooms are going. Definitely, we really need some more decent, quality homes," she said.

Families were moving to Rotorua from other centres and Australia, she said. "People are moving to those kind of areas that have got decent schools around them.

"Some of them have come back from Australia, some are coming down for jobs, most of the people we've got at the moment are moving into Rotorua from Whakatane, Whangarei, Hamilton, Tauranga, and one from Murupara to get their children into school," she said.

Rotorua Property Investors Association president Debbie van den Broek said it was unusual for so many people to be looking for homes at this time of year. "Normally it is a time when people are not really looking, but this time there have been lots of people looking.

"I found it unusual that so many people are wanting to move in, so yes I would say there is a shortage of well-maintained rental properties. Good tenants and good houses get snapped up. My TradeMe listing had three times as many hits as usual.

"There is a shortage of good housing."