Asking prices for houses in the small North Island town of Kawerau have skyrocketed 132 percent in the last decade, according to new property data.
The figures, compiled by realestate.co.nz, compared the average asking price of each of New Zealand's districts every year between 2011 and 2020.
Asking prices in Kawerau, a milling district in the Bay of Plenty, increased from about $151,00 ten years ago to $351,413 by the end of 2020 - a percentage increase greater than any other district in the country.
But it wasn't the only district to see values increase markedly. Central Hawke's Bay (108 percent increase), Hamilton City (102 percent), Waitakere City (99 percent) and Central Otago (96 percent) all saw asking prices soar to double what they were just a decade ago.
Auckland - led by Waitakere, which went from $465,305 in 2011 to $926,889 in 2020 - performed predictably well, with only the region's northern Rodney district failing to reach a 50 percent price increase.
Two of our most-beloved wine regions - Hawke's Bay and Central Otago/Lakes - saw major price surges across the board.
Napier (85 percent), Hastings (69 percent) and Wairoa (52 percent) joined Central Hawke's Bay in recording notable increases, while Queenstown (83 percent) and Wanaka (76 percent) backed up Central Otago's rise to an average asking price of $795,287 from about $400,000 a decade prior.
A host of Waikato districts also performed well.
"Data from realestate.co.nz shows a 102 percent increase in average asking prices in Hamilton City from $378,470 in 2011 to $763,446 in 2020," a release says.
"Also showing strong growth were South Waikato and Otorohanga, where average asking prices have increased by 87 percent and 84 percent respectively since 2011.
"Tourism hot spot Waitomo, however, lost some of its glow over the decade. The average asking price in Waitomo increased just 26 percent since 2011 - the smallest increase of all districts in the Waikato region."
The Bay of Plenty, Coromandel, Manawatu/Whanganui and Wairarapa are among the other regions to have seen large property price increases.
In fact, the good news for property owners was nearly countrywide, with only the West Coast townships of Westland and Greymouth (both 2 percent) failing to crack double-figure asking price growth in the last 10 years.
Realestate.co.nz says this proves property is still a great way for New Zealanders to invest cash.
"Ten years' worth of data shows that, in the long term, the value of property in New Zealand increases steadily in nearly every region. This suggests that property is still a sound investment for Kiwis."
