Queenstown house prices have soared compared with the rest of the country, but elsewhere in the province they are well below national gains during the past year.
Nationally, house values for December around the country are up 4.9% on a year ago, with Auckland up almost 10% and Queenstown Lakes up 7.2%, but with Central Otago and Dunedin trailing at just 3% and 0.7% gains respectively.
Quotable Value's housing data for December showed the effects of 2014 housing shortages, led by Auckland and Christchurch, while regionally, results were flat and often lacklustre.
Pricing volatility in 2014 was due principally to the effects of the Reserve Bank's contentious loan to value ratio (LVR) banking restrictions, low interest rates, then rate hikes, the general election and a surge of inbound migrants.
QV national spokeswoman Andrea Rush said the year got off to a slow start, following introduction of the LVR speed limits in October 2013.
Values picked up in February and March. However, value increases plateaued after four Reserve Bank interest rate hikes during March and July.
''The prospect of further interest rate rises in the lead-up to the election seemed to cause some uncertainty ... This led to a slowdown in the market during the middle of the year,'' she said.
House sales volumes continued to drop below the number seen in the same months of 2012 and 2013, CoreLogic director of research Jonno Ingerson said.
Rather than being a direct result of the LVR speed limits, this was a continuation of a downward trend that had started in early 2013, he said.
Sales volumes had beenhigh during the 2003 to 2007 boom, but dropped dramatically in 2008 during the global financial crisis and had not returned to normal levels, Mr Ingerson said.
Ms Rush said Auckland and Christchurch value increases slowed after the mid-year market slowdown, while in Wellington, Hamilton and Dunedin they decreased.
''However, once the election was over and interest rate rises were put on hold, there was a surge of new listings ... and values began to tick upwards again in most of the main centres,'' she said.
The return of relatively low interest rates, coupled with cash incentives and record migration levels, led to a strong re-acceleration of values in Auckland, she said.
Mr Ingerson said given strong migration, continuing low interest rates, a shortage of housing and high consumer confidence, values were likely to keep increasing in Auckland this year.
There may be modest increases in some of the other main centres, but most smaller centres were likely to remain steady.
He noted the Reserve Bank had stated it was prepared to introduce further measures to slow the housing market if necessary, which might include further restraints on bank lending, given interest rates were unlikely to rise until later this year.
