New jobs lift demand for rentals in district

The median rent for a house in Wairarapa rose 12 per cent to $285 this August compared to last, Trade Me Property data shows. FILE PHOTO

New arrivals and new jobs are boosting the Wairarapa rental market, says a Wairarapa real estate boss.

The median rent for a house in Wairarapa rose 12 per cent to $285 this August compared to last, Trade Me Property data shows.

Harcourts managing director Prue Hamill said job creation, as well as new arrivals to the area, had contributed to a busy rental market.

She said the company didn't have many unrented properties and routinely had people requesting rentals.

"We're not having properties sitting for a long time ... which is good."

Ms Hamill said Wairarapa was still an affordable area for renters, despite the increase in rents. She didn't believe locals were struggling to find rentals they could afford.

A property renter in Auckland can now expect to pay at least $400 a week, Trade Me figures show.

Head of Trade Me Property Nigel Jeffries said even the smallest unit or one-bedroom home would cost a typical Auckland renter $400 per week.

Outside Auckland, median asking rent remained relatively stable for the fourth month in a row, up 3 per cent to $360 per week.

Over the past five years, the median asking rent for a property outside of Auckland has increased 20 per cent from $300 a week in August 2010 to $360 a week in August 2015.

Median asking rents increased in 10 regions, fell in three regions and were unchanged in two regions.

The Trade Me Property Rental Price Index measures trends in median weekly rents for residential properties on Trade Me Property rented out by real estate property managers and private landlords over the past month. About 11,000 rental properties are let via Trade Me Property each month.