Rents rise outside of major cities - Trade Me

Rents in Bay of Plenty rose by 10 per cent year on year but didn't have a patch on Marlborough's leap. Photo/123RF

It's not just Auckland and Wellington feeling the heat, tenants in the smaller regions are facing sizeable increases in rent prices.

Trade Me's Property report released today showed that rents have gone up by $3000 annually in just three years in the regions.

"Back in March 2014, the median weekly rent outside Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch was $310 a week. Today, that figure has jumped to $370 a week, up 20 per cent and adding just over $3000 to the annual rental bill for tenants," Head of Trade Me Property Nigel Jeffries said.

Conversely, average asking prices for similar properties rose by 29 per cent, showing that landlords are keeping rent prices in tune with property value.

Rent prices in Northland and Bay of Plenty have reached record highs of $380 and $440 respectively, both showing a rise of around 10 per cent annually.

Marlborough had the highest year-on-year growth at a staggering 17.6 per cent. Hawke's Bay had a 9.4 per cent growth while the West Coast recorded a 8.7 per cent climb.

Otago and Southland were relatively steady at 1.4 per cent and 4.0 per cent annually. Taranaki and Gisborne recorded no change in prices.

Canterbury bucks the New Zealand trend with a decline of 3.7 per cent in rental prices.

Auckland landlords, meanwhile, are feeling shortchanged by rent prices in the city.

Crockers Property Investment Index showed 34 per cent of Auckland landlords interviewed feel that Auckland rental prices are below a fair price, and over half plan to increase rent in the next six months.