The national median rent charged on newly tenanted residential properties throughout the country started the year with a $20 a week increase.
After being stuck on $600 a week for the previous 11 months, February to December 2024, it increased to $620 a week in January 2025.
Those figures are based on tenancy bonds received by Tenancy Services and most will relate to properties newly tenanted in January.
However, the increase in rent was not uniform throughout the country.
There was no change in the median rents in Auckland, Waikato or Hawke's Bay in January, while decreases were recorded in Northland -$30, West Coast -$15, Tasman -$35 and Nelson -$20.
Regions that recorded increases were Bay of Plenty +$25, Gisborne +$50, Taranaki +$20, Manawatu/Whanganui +$10, Wellington +$20, Marlborough +$25, Otago +$128 and Southland +$35.
The big increase in Otago's median rent is largely due to the huge uptake of student accommodation in Dunedin, which is concentrated at the start of the year.
January is usually an extremely busy month for the rental market due to a combination student activity and other people finding it a convenient time to relocate, and Tenancy Services received 14,304 bonds during the month, up 7.9% on January last year but, down 2.7% compared to January 2023.
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4 Comments
Looking at Wellington, that is an increase of just 3.3%, vey modest compared to the council rates increase of 16.9%!
Checking the numbers. Average wellington rates $3000. 17% = $520. $20 per week is $1,040 meaning there is $520 to cover any other cost increases, insurance etc.
Here's a rental I viewed- for just 680 or so a week at the far end of Jackson st petone you can get a 3 bedroom rental complete with brush marks of paint on every window glass, a laundry sink covered in white paint and an original early 1960s kitchen complete with discoloration and old marks on the benchtops. New carpet though and garage. Visitors to your new home can admire the rotten timber window frame about to give way when entering and bare weatherboard where the paint bubbled away some time ago.The retro gas heater In lounge has been tested so there shouldn't be any conflagration in the night(whats a heat pump?) - not applying
My experience in Nelson / Tasman as a property investor is the market is very firm. Sure because of the tight market we have not needed to find many new tenants recently. Each property advertised has experienced above average high numbers of enquires and each new tenancy has been let for around $30 per week more. However the annual rent review / increases have been lower than normal due to a difficult economy.
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