Queenstown Lakes houses still dearest

David Cole
David Cole
Queenstown had once again been given the "dubious honour" of being the most expensive place in New Zealand by Quotable Value, Queenstown Lakes Housing Trust chairman David Cole said yesterday at the official launch of the trust's affordable housing development at Lake Hayes Estate.

QV figures for August showed the average sale price of residential properties in the Queenstown Lakes District was $577,617.

Mr Cole said it cost $150,000 more to buy a median-priced house in Queenstown compared with Christchurch or Dunedin and the gap had to be filled.

In his latest report, QV.co.nz research director Jonno Ingerson said property values in most provincial centres had either increased or remained steady in the past three months, although compared with 12 months ago, values were still generally lower.

"Queenstown [Lakes] is the main exception, with values 3.5% above the same time last year," he said.

The August index showed Queenstown had an average sales price of $577,617. The second-highest average sales price was in Auckland, which recorded $532,296, while the average in Dunedin was $268,675.

Real Estate Institute of New Zealand Queenstown spokesman Kelvin Collins told the Otago Daily Times yesterday the QV average sales price was an "inflated average", largely due to "good activity over $2 million".

"The $577,000 is dragged up [by] a few million-dollar sales in the last four months ... it's creating a bit of an artificial average," he said.

The August median sale price for Queenstown was $495,000, while the median over the past 12 months had been $500,500.

Housing Minister Phil Heatley, who officially opened the affordable housing development yesterday, said housing affordability was a major consideration several years ago but, nationally, "it is less of a top-of-mind issue" now.

"However, that's not the case for Queenstown, where prices are so very, very high."

Mr Heatley said the solution was multi-faceted - the Resource Management Act needed to change so consents could be streamlined, making it easier for councils and applicants.

"In Auckland, to subdivide a property costs $40,000. That's just to split a quarter-acre, which is madness".

Another major factor was for the Government to start "managing the economy" to ensure interest rates remained at 6-7%.

The Nerin Square development opened yesterday will eventually boast 27 houses built by the Queenstown Community Housing Trust, a child care centre and a cafe.

 

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