Price of houses and rent compared to bread and petrol

The average price of a house has increased by a greater extent than the price of other commodities over the last five years, according to our data and figures just released by Statistics New Zealand.

The report, New Zealand in Profile 2015, offers a snapshot of the people, economy and government in Aotearoa, and is helpful for people looking to move here and learn more about the country.

Comparing 2009 with 2014, the report highlights the change in price of a number of items, including bread, milk, fish and chips, beer and petrol.

Retail items

While the price of white bread has stayed the same, fish and chips cost 11% more in 2014 than they did in 2009, and your beer cost 23% more - going from $4.78 to $5.87 for a 400ml glass.

Little girl sitting in shopping trolley in Pak n Save

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Category	2008	2013	Increase
Bread - white sliced loaf (700g)	$1.80	$1.80	0%
Beer - glass (400ml)	$4.78	$5.87	23%
GP visit - adult	$30.18	$37.14	23%
Fish and chips	$5.32	$5.91	11%
Lamb - chops (kg)	$12.78	$13.89	9%
Apples (kg)	$2.31	$2.52	9%
Petrol - 91 Octane (litre)	$1.60	$2.11	32%
Milk - standard (2 litres)	$3.22	$3.60	12%

Housing

While the biggest rise was seen for petrol, an increase of 32%, our data found that the average price of a house has increased by an even greater extent, going up 38%.

Rentals are also up by 26%, from an average of $388 in 2009, to $488 in 2014.

The Statistics New Zealand report shows that 33.4% people rent, 33.3% own a home with a mortgage and 31.5% own a home without a mortgage.

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Category	2009	2014	Increase
Barfoot & Thompson average Auckland house prices	$522,567	$718,852	38%
Barfoot & Thompson average Auckland weekly rent	$388	$488	26%

New Zealand population rising faster than Australia

The report also looks at population growth, employment rates and changes in earnings during this period.

It shows that the population in New Zealand is growing at 1.52% a year, which is faster than Australia, China, the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany - the top five countries for people visiting New Zealand.

Salaries and wages

The median hourly earnings have risen from $19.47 in 2009, to $21.94 in 2014, and the median weekly earnings from $750 to $863.

You can read the full report New Zealand in Profile 2015 on the Statistics NZ website.

Source: House prices: Barfoot & Thompson average house prices. Excludes Northland and commercial sales. Retail items: Statistics New Zealand - New Zealand in Profile 2015.