In about two weeks, New Zealand's largest city will likely be out of lockdown. Last year, when life returned to relative normality, house-hunters made the most of record-low interest rates and loosened lending criteria to increase their portfolios or get on the ladder.
This year, things are different: the Official Cash Rate has been hiked and is expected to be hiked again; interest rates are rising in accord; and loan-to-value and debt-to-income ratio rules have decreased. Meanwhile, there's record-low housing stock in parts of NZ, demand and prices remain high, but we're also told prices might have peaked.
Tony Alexander is an expert on the macroeconomic drivers of the housing market, here to help readers make sense of what's going on.
