At least they're aware there is a problem. We'll have to wait and see if they actually DO something about it.
House prices leave rents behind
5:00AM Wednesday April 25, 2007
By Simon Collins
Average rents have risen faster than wages in the past five years and are tipped to jump further in the next two years as the rental market catches up with Auckland's soaring house prices.
Property Investors Association vice-president Andrew King predicted yesterday that Auckland rents could leap 20 per cent in the next two years.
The head of the property department at Auckland University, Associate Professor Laurence Murphy, said a 20 per cent increase would be necessary to restore yields on rental properties to the rates prevailing in the early 1990s.
But other experts consulted yesterday were more moderate. All expect more increases, but most do not expect them to reach 20 per cent.
A consultants' report published on Monday forecast continued pressure on the rental market as a spinoff from rising house prices.
Average rents registered with the Government's tenancy bond centre rose in the year to March by 3.3 per cent in Waitakere, 6.1 per cent in Auckland City, 6.9 per cent in Manukau and 8.8 per cent on the North Shore.
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here.
Developers sceptical about providing cheap housing.