The average weekly after-tax pay for those on a median Wanganui income was $724.78, up from $701.99 in April last year.
Roost also released a further report last week showing it would take 22.1 per cent of a Wanganui first home buyer's median take home pay to service a mortgage on a lower-quartile priced house, up from 20.9 per cent in March.
Home Trust Mortgages director Robert Puklowski said the Wanganui market had "been a bit patchy" in the past month, but first home buyers had still been active.
"There's lots of perfectly good properties going for between $100,000 and $120,000 and it's cheaper than renting in many cases at that level.
"The number of lower value properties that are selling is making it affordable."
Buyers were using KiwiSaver withdrawals to service home deposits, he said.
Nationally, it now takes nearly two-thirds of a median income to pay the mortgage on a $432,250 house.
The Roost figures were released in the wake of last months Budget, which Labour criticised for offering little to first home buyers.