The news this week that the price of an average UK home has hit £260,000 came as a bit of a jolt for New Zealanders. Kiwis who obsessively follow such matters were left wondering how even property in London can be cheaper than buying a house over here. The average home in New Zealand costs £520,000, and significantly more again in either of our two major cities, Auckland and Wellington.
When Jacinda Ardern became prime minister she promised to address our unsustainable property market which has locked out all but the most privileged youngsters from getting on the ladder. The continued spike in prices shows how little Ardern has delivered.
New Zealand’s housing market has gone stark raving bonkers in recent years, leaving pretty much every other comparable country in the shade. Economists, of course, put it slightly differently: relative to incomes, this island nation now ranks as the sixth-least affordable place on the planet to buy a home.
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