Aussies coming for NZ homes - Brisbane money could get them a bargain in Queenstown
Australians are increasingly hunting for bargains in New Zealand’s housing market while many Kiwi buyers sit on the sidelines.
And it’s no longer just Queenstown - Australians are now eyeing Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland too, according to The Block auctioneer Tom Panos.
A weaker New Zealand dollar, softer New Zealand house prices and uncertainty around investor tax settings in Australia are driving more Australians to look across the Tasman.
Panos said while many Kiwi buyers were psychologically scarred by the housing downturn, Australians just saw opportunity.
“A lot of people bought during Covid in New Zealand and are now selling for less - that’s impacted people mentally,” he told OneRoof.
He said Australians were drawn to Christchurch’s newer housing stock and post-earthquake rebuild.
“It’s still an affordable value point. It’s a new city. It’s been built like a Lego factory.”
Ray White economist Atom Go Tian told OneRoof Australians saw New Zealand as a market with more room for growth as Australian property prices become harder to justify.
“A price that is standard inner-city Brisbane could get you a bargain in Queenstown,” he said.
Go Tian says Auckland is increasingly being seen as undervalued from across the Tasman.
Meanwhile, Bayleys national director Johnny Sinclair said Australians still “have an infatuation with the South Island”.
Agents say Australians no longer see New Zealand property as just a holiday-home market, but also as an investment opportunity.
Sotheby’s noted that Australian inquiry had lifted over the past month or two, from Queenstown and Central Otago to Auckland, Tauranga, Taupō and Northland.
ASB economist Mark Smith said the New Zealand and Australian housing markets still tend to track each other over the longer term, even if they diverged at times.
While net migration had slowed to around 25,000, it could climb back towards 50,000 next year ... potentially reigniting housing demand.
Smith said house price growth is likely a 2027 story, and overseas buyers could help stimulate the market.
Bayleys head of insights manager Chris Farhi told OneRoof that any increase in Australian interest was likely to be “a slow burn rather than a tidal wave”, and agents say many are still in the research phase rather than actively buying.
Still, Panos says Australians frustrated by high property prices at home should seriously consider looking across the Tasman.
“If you are an Australian looking at other investment options, it’s worth taking a three-hour flight to New Zealand because it may be much more attractive than you thought,” he said.
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