New Zealand house prices soar despite Covid recession, worsening affordability crisis

Property market posted an 11% rise in median values, masking rising homelessness and a widening social divide, critics say

New Zealand house prices have defied the Covid-19 recession and soared to record levels, prompting warnings that the hot property market will damage the country's long-term economic wellbeing and widen inequality.

New Zealand, which already had some of the most unaffordable housing in the world, saw median prices rise 11.1 % in the year to September, while the median price in Auckland reached nearly $1m (US$660,000). Prices rose 2.5% across the country in September compared with August.