As at March 2024, the Wellington district with the largest annual change in the house price index was the Upper Hutt district, with an increase of 4.6 percent from the previous year. Overall, across Wellington, residential house prices were up by 2.2 percent from March 2023.

The price of residential property in New Zealand was the highest in the Auckland region in March 2025, with an average sale price of around *********** New Zealand dollars. The most populated city in the country, Auckland, has consistently reported higher house prices compared to most other regions. Buying property in New Zealand, particularly in its major cities, is expensive. The nation has one of the highest house-price-to-income ratios in the world. Auckland residential market The residential housing market in Auckland is competitive. Prices have been slowly decreasing; the Auckland region experienced an annual decrease in the average residential house price in March 2025 compared to the same month in the previous year. The price of residential property in Auckland was the highest in the North Shore City district, with an average sale price of around **** million New Zealand dollars. Home financing Due to the rising cost of real estate, an increasing number of New Zealanders who want to own their own property are taking on mortgages. Most residential mortgage lending in New Zealand went to owner-occupier borrowers, followed by first home buyers. In addition to mortgage lending, previously under the KiwiSaver HomeStart initiative, first-home buyers in New Zealand were able to apply to withdraw all or part of their KiwiSaver retirement savings to assist with purchasing a first home. Nonetheless, the scheme was discontinued in May 2024. Furthermore, even with a large initial deposit, it may take decades for many borrowers to pay off their mortgage.

As at March 2024, the monthly change in the house price index was the largest in the Wellington region, with an increase of *** percent from the previous month. Overall, across New Zealand, residential house prices were up by around *** percent from February 2024.

We want Wellington to be a city where we have healthy, affordable homes in connected and lively neighbourhoods, close to the places we live, work and play. It is important that we provide for a variety of housing type, so that everyone has an opportunity to own or rent a quality home in the city.Since 2000 population growth in Wellington has outstripped the number of dwellings constructed and this trend is set to continue. We are already feeling the effects of high house prices and high rents; it is also increasingly difficult for first home buyers to purchase a home.Over the next 30 years we will need between 25,000 and 32,000 new dwellings to meet our projected growth demands. However, under current planning settings it is estimated the city will only have capacity for 20,000 dwellings over this time horizon, leaving a shortfall of between 5,000 and 12,000 dwellings.The Regional Housing and Business Capacity Assessment Report takes a 30-year look at Wellington’s urban District Councils (Wellington, Hutt City, Upper Hutt, Porirua, and Kapiti Coast) capacity for housing and business. The report estimates that based on predicted population growth across the five districts, and current development controls and patterns, the region faces a shortfall of approximately 9,000 to 21,000 dwellings. Without action, Wellington City will face a shortfall of between 4,600 and 12,000 dwellings by 2047.The Wellington City Residential Catchments have been created by grouping together areas of the city that form logical housing catchments i.e. the southern suburbs vs. the eastern suburbs. They represent clearer sub-markets of the city in which the demand and supply of different typologies can be contrasted at a more detailed level.The demand, capacity, and difference values in the dataset summarise the projected dwellings information of chapter 2, section 4 of the Wellington Regional Housing and Business Development Capacity report. It is recommended this section is reviewed while using this data.Wellington Regional Housing and Business Development Capacity - Chapter 2 - Wellington City Council is available on the Planning for Growth website: https://planningforgrowth.wellington.govt.nz/resources1/documentsFor more information contact the Planning for Growth team: planningforgrowth@wcc.govt.nz