Otago is one of six provinces to book record median house prices, while the separate Central area prices are up more than 42% on a year ago.
Central Otago-Lakes’ median price is $694,500 and Queenstown’s $837,500, Real Estate Institute of New Zealand data shows.
Underpinning the high prices in the REINZ data is the Massey University home affordability report, released yesterday, which singles out Central Otago-Lakes and Auckland as still topping the affordability index by "considerable margins".
"The margin of difference between these two regions and the rest of the country is reaching unprecedented levels," Massey University’s Dr Susan Flint-Hartle said.
The report shows Auckland is 62% less affordable than the rest of the country and Central Otago-Lakes 61% less affordable, the latter because of a lower median wage band.
For the first time, the effects of the Reserve Bank’s loan-to-value ratio (LVR) restrictions requiring minimum deposits of 40% appear to be showing up in housing data.
Despite a cooling market in Auckland and investor interest waning around Otago and the separate Central Otago-Lakes region, the REINZ national median price has risen to a record of $515,000.
Excluding Auckland, the national median price hit a record high of $400,000.
While there was a 20% decline in the number of properties for sale and a 10% decline in actual numbers sold nationally in September, to 7397, that shortage is boosting prices in many areas, especially beyond Auckland’s immediate boundaries.
Otago and Central Otago-Lakes’ respective REINZ regional directors, Liz Nidd and Gail Hudson, both noted investor numbers had "declined" in the two markets, as the LVR restrictions started to bite.
"The market remains tight in Otago, despite the number of investors declining somewhat due to the new LVR restrictions," Mrs Nidd, of Dunedin, said.
"The new record median price [for Otago] is a result of these tight conditions," she said.
Sales around Otago fell 7% overall, from 281 to 262, compared with September last year, with sales rising 31% in North Otago, but falling 4% in South Otago and down 15% in Dunedin.
Sales in the Central Otago-Lakes region were up 10.6%, from 132 a year ago to 146, with Queenstown up 25% at 69 and Central unmoved at 77 homes.
Economists have said the greater LVR restrictions are starting to bite, ASB’s economist Kim Mundy noting the LVRs had "taken some heat out of the market".
"The latest round of investor-focused LVRs appears to be weighing on market activity. We expect this to continue to suppress market activity over the remainder of the year," she said.
Westpac acting chief economist Michael Gordon noted "ongoing effects" of the stricter LVRs, but cautioned lending restrictions historically peaked during their first six months, so the data had to be monitored "before drawing firm conclusions".
Dr Flint-Hartle said while most of the country, including Auckland, had shown modest improvements in affordability during the past 12 months, largely because of steady reductions in the official cash rate, the Waikato-Bay of Plenty region had joined Otago Central-Lakes in becoming less affordable over the same period.
