House prices on the rise

By LOUISA CLEAVE

House prices in the growing cities of Manukau and Waitakere have risen significantly in the past year as first-home buyers look to those centres.

The average cost of a house in Manukau last month was $255,000 - $33,000 more than in December 2000, says the Real Estate Institute's latest report on the country's property market.

In Waitakere City, home buyers in December paid a median price of $213,000 - $25,000 more than the year before.

Manukau and Waitakere still offer, on average, a cheaper option than Auckland and the North Shore.

But analysis of the Auckland region shows they are more expensive than Papakura.

First-home buyers have come back into the market, thanks to low interest rates and stable inflation, says Rex Hadley, the president of the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand.

"It would figure in my mind that a lot of first-home buyers have taken the plunge to buy a home now and it's probably easy to do that and get into those suburbs."

Auckland City is the most expensive city in the region to buy in, with an average price tag increasing by $10,000 to $285,000 since December 2000.

Metropolitan Auckland, which covers the central business district and contains mostly apartments, showed a $13,900 increase in the average price of a dwelling to $258,900.

Nationwide, Auckland still tops the table as the most expensive region to buy in, averaging $253,800 for a home.

Southland is the cheapest, with a $78,500 average price.

Mr Hadley said that although house prices had risen every month since last May, the trend should not be considered a property boom.

"We're only just returning to where we should be. The December figures weren't quite as good as the 1998 figures but were hugely bigger than the 2000 figures."

He said steady growth in the industry was expected this year.