In a surprising move the Reserve Bank kept New Zealand official cash rate at 1% this week – many had expected the rate to be reduced to 0.75%. The RBNZ’s Monetary Policy Committee says employment remains around its maximum sustainable level while inflation remains below the 2 percent target mid-point. However, it conceded that economic growth continued to slow in mid-2019 reflecting weak business investment and soft household spending. The Reserve Bank expects economic growth to remain subdued over the remainder of the calendar year. Be prepared for rate cuts in the New Year. While some pundits have labelled the Auckland housing market as ‘cooling’, property data analysts, CoreLogic have revealed there is still significant opportunity for growth – you just need to know where to buy. Examining growth of each Auckland suburb from November 2007 (the pre-GFC peak), its data shows a significant variance, suburb to suburb. Over the last decade, all suburbs in the Auckland top 50 have increased by more than 100%, markedly higher than the national average of 67%. CoreLogic also looked at growth from November 2016 to today. Topping both the Auckland and New Zealand wide rankings for property growth is the East Auckland seaside suburb, Wai O Taiki Bay which has seen an increase of more than 150% since 2007. This is followed by the surrounding suburbs of Glen Innes and Point England, with a percentage change of 134% and 132% respectively. Trade me says the New Zealand property market is heating up for summer with ten of New Zealand’s 15 regions hitting record average asking prices in October. Head of Trade Me Property Nigel Jeffries says the total number of views on property listings climbed 12 per cent on September’s figure as buyers hit the market in October. The number of properties for sale on Trade Me rose 9 per cent on September. However, despite this increase, demand is still outstripping supply which means prices are climbing. “The Bay of Plenty, Canterbury, Hawke’s Bay, Manawatu/Whanganui, Nelson/Tasman, Northland, Otago, Southland, Waikato and Wellington, all saw record high asking prices in October while the national average asking price rose 1.2 per cent year-on-year to $672,600.” According to lobby group the real estate institute median house prices across New Zealand increased by 8.2% in the year to October to a new record high of $607,500 – the first time the median house price for the country has crept over the $600,000 mark. Median house prices for New Zealand excluding Auckland increased by 8.6% to a new record high of $520,000, up from $479,000 in October last year. Median house prices in Auckland increased by 0.8% to $868,000 – up from $861,000 at the same time last year – the highest price in 19 months. • Northland up 9.4% • Waikato up 9.6% • Bay of Plenty up 7.8% • Hawke’s Bay up 16.3% • Manawatu/Wanganui up 20.9% • Otago up 15.8% The institute says the government’s foreign buyer ban is having an impact on sales. The number of residential properties sold across New Zealand in October decreased by 4% from the same time last year to 6,801. On the home loan interest rate front; no change this week. Most major high street lenders are offering 3.45% for two years. But as always; shop around and haggle for a better rate or cash back. Threatening to take your business elsewhere normally helps them focus.