As the average price of an Auckland home hits over $800,000 more people are turning to friends to help them get into the property market.

Sixty is the new 50 even when it comes to mortgages.

Banks foreclosed on more than 700 properties in the last year when financially strapped homeowners could no longer afford repayments.

ASB has followed the lead of ANZ and Kiwibank and slashed its fixed mortgage rates.

Westpac could join a mortgage-rate battle after Kiwibank and ANZ slashed their home loan rates.

ANZ and KiwiBank have cut their mortgage rates as speculation grows the Reserve Bank will cut the OCR.

The number of mortgage holders paying break fees to cash in on near record-low interest rates has jumped, with some homeowners saving thousands from the switch.

New lending rules targeting Auckland residential property investors will cool the market - but the city's "gravitational pull" will counter any impact, John Key says.

REINZ figures show the national median house price fell 4.2 per cent in April, but rose 18pc in Auckland.

Labour leader Andrew Little says the Reserve Bank should target property speculators to ease the pressures on the Auckland housing market.

Andrew Little says a speech from the Reserve Bank deputy governor was effectively saying there was a housing crisis – something John Key had refused to accept.

Auckland house prices surged 13 per cent in the last month alone and are up $83,000 annually, according to REINZ's latest figures.

Auckland's housing market is a giant Ponzi scheme, one economist says, as residents pay each other to get in, driving prices up.

Sydneysiders take comfort...Aucklanders are suffering more when it comes to buying a house.

Entry-level Auckland home buyers are opting for older houses on smaller sections in need of considerable DIY work.

Nearly one in five Auckland first-home buyers now spends more than six years saving for a deposit, delaying the home ownership dream while prices rise.

Mortgage payments for Auckland's most affordable homes are costing first-time buyers nearly half their take-home pay each week, a new report shows.

My bank has been harassing me to refix my mortgage. I've been getting reminders for a month and there is still another month to go before my current contract ends.

Mortgage lenders have noticed an upswing in the number of people withdrawing money from KiwiSaver for a first home.

Like any successful politician, Prime Minister John Key knows a week is a long time in politics, writes Bernard Hickey.

Walt Glazer asks whether Auckland should become the Hong Kong of the South Pacific or remain a Kiwi oasis of security for the future.

Auckland homeowners are finding themselves unable to sell, because they can't find another place to buy due to a listings drought.

First-home buyers struggling to get on the property ladder are turning to new builds, which fall outside the high loan-to-value-ratio restrictions.

Banks are tipped to drop interest rates to new lows as competition to attract house hunters and homeowners escalates into an all-out mortgage war.

The Reserve Bank's indication that its next interest rate move could be down is expected to reinforce a decline in fixed mortgage rates.

More interest rates have been cut following a week of competition by the country's biggest banks to attract house hunters and mortgage holders.

Three more banks have cut interest rates in a fight to attract customers. But are some customers being unfairly stung by refinancing fees?