Of the major cities in New Zealand, only Wellington city has kept pace with Auckland rental prices over the past three years.
Auckland region's average rental price across all property sizes increased by 5% between 2014 and 2015*, slightly lower than the 6% growth seen between the same period in 2013 and 2014.
Only Wellington city** kept pace with Auckland, with their average weekly rent increasing to $525 in Q4 of 2015, compared with Auckland region's $533 average weekly rent.
Christchurch has seen a marked drop in rent received. Following the 2011 earthquake, Christchurch experienced sharp annual growth, but this seems to have levelled off as more rental properties become available. Rental prices fell by 4% over the last year.
The regions South of Auckland (Papakura and Franklin) have shown strong growth over the past few years, as Aucklanders are prepared to travel further afield to avoid the higher rent in more central areas.
* Data gathered between October to December 2014 and October to December 2015.
** Wellington City only, not including Upper or Lower Hutt.