Data shows Whanganui/Manawatū region best for residential investors

Capital gains and yields are good news for residential investors in Whanganui/Manawatū. Photo / Bevan Conley

The Whanganui/Manawatū housing market is the best-performing for investors, with the second-highest capital gains and fourth-highest yield in New Zealand.

The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) Capital Gains and Rental Yields Report for the fourth quarter of 2020 shows the region has taken top spot, ahead of the West Coast in second and Taranaki and Gisborne third equal.

Whanganui/Manawatū was last named in the top three regions for investors in the first quarter of 2020.

For the quarter ending December 2020, capital gains in the region increased 25.3 per cent on the same period in 2019, with median prices going from $400,000 to $501,000.

Yields were 4 per cent for the Whanganui/Manawatū region.

"As house prices have continued to rise, we've seen yields continue to fall showing that some of the strong yields we've seen previously are no longer available to investors," REINZ acting chief executive Wendy Alexander said.

"Again, the regions with the best returns for investors continue to be some of the smaller and more 'affordable' regions which again points to the importance of due diligence before buying an investment property.

"According to the Reserve Bank data, lending to investors in this quarter increased by 71.1 per cent as people took the opportunity to take advantage of the removal of LVRs and low-interest-rate environment, suggesting that investors are happy to take a longer-term approach to investing."