KEY POINTS:
House prices have exactly doubled in the past ten years.
The Real Estate Institute's annual review of prices released today shows the median price has gone from $165,000 dollars in 1997 to $330,000 in December last year.
The biggest increases in house prices for the last year were in the provincial cities, with Wanganui, Invercargill, Rotorua and Palmerston North leading the way.
Wanganui's 22% increase means the median there rose from $148,000 in December 2005 to $181,000 at the end of last year.
Invercargill's median price increased by 17.5%, from $139,000 in 2005 to $154,000 in 2006, while Rotorua's median price was up from $214,000 to $249,000.
Price growth in the larger metropolitan areas tended to lag behind, although North Shore City broke that trend - showing the fourth largest increase with median house prices up to $519,000 from $453,000 - a 14.4% increase.
On a regional basis, Taranaki houses experienced the greatest price appreciation for the year, showing a 17.4% increase in median values, up from $230,000 to $270,000.
- NEWSTALK ZB
