Auckland’s housing and construction squeeze is spreading

The latest house price data from Quotable Value shows the property market has been regaining momentum over the last couple of months, particularly outside Auckland. We estimate that house price inflation excluding the Auckland and Canterbury regions is at an 11-year high of 17%pa, having accelerated from 14%pa in QV’s November data. The pick-up is partly due to some weak results in late 2015 and early 2016 in the wake of the capital gains tax and loan-to-value changes that took place at that time, but also reflects persistent strength in demand for housing that has not been successfully quelled by the Reserve Bank’s latest measures.