The CoreLogic House Price Index for New Zealand has revealed a quarterly decline of 0.9% – the largest drop over a three month period since the end of 2010 when the market was still in recovery mode from the Global Financial Crisis (GFC).

CoreLogic NZ head of research, Nick Goodall said Christchurch was the only main centre still experiencing growth. “For the main centres, the persistent declines in both Wellington and Dunedin housing values have seen the annual growth rate plummet to single figures, while Hamilton is hanging on to double digit growth at 10%,” said Goodall.

He added: “For Wellington, this has been a dramatic reduction from the heights of 36.1% growth in the year to October 2021. Christchurch remains the only main centre experiencing any real growth – supported by better affordability.

“The latest house price-to-income ratio in Christchurch sits at 6.8, compared to next-best Wellington at 8.1. Similarly, the share of income required for mortgage repayments is more favourable in Christchurch (38%) ahead of Wellington (45%).”