[tharax]

1. Jacinda Ardern is no longer Prime Minister. This is a recent change without much fanfare, so it’s not unreasonable the author made this mistake.

2. ...Is Auckland suddenly more affordable? As someone who grew up there but currently living overseas, it’s news to me. A lot of my friends are saddled with large mortgages they could only get with help from their parents. In a low wage economy they will struggle to pay if interest rates rise from their historic lows.

[BirdieNZ]

Regarding (2), it depends on what you mean by affordable. It is becoming more affordable to buy land compared to the last few years, because of interest rate rises making the cost of credit increase. It is becoming less affordable to build a house or other capital improvements, because of construction material cost increases and a labour shortage. Rents are rising but not as rapidly as the rest of NZ because of a declining population combined with an increase in the supply of housing. This last point is really what the author is touching on, but those who rent are not your friends that have large mortgages.

[tharax]

My friends and family who could not afford to buy have almost all left the city completely, so I guess you’re right in the sense they don’t rent _in Auckland_ any more. Last Summer I spent half my time driving between Warkworth, Rotorua, and Hamilton just to see those nearest and dearest to me. We all used to live less than 20 minutes from the Harbour Bridge.

[osigurdson]

I'm surprised that NZ has a declining population. Is this correct?

[potatochup]

House prices have certainly dropped since peak pandemic madness. It remains to be seen if they stay low, although there has been plenty of construction, and some supportive policy from the govt.