First-home buyers in Auckland would need to be earning three times the median income to be able to afford a comfortable first home, according to real estate statistics website One Roof.
Based on the median house value in Auckland of $1.2 million, a household would need to earn $241,200 to comfortably afford mortgage repayments of 5.79 percent over 30 years.
That's triple the median income of $76,232, and the household would also need to be able to save $248,607 for a 20 percent deposit, according to One Roof.
- Can you afford a KiwiBuild home?
- KiwiBuild income caps announced at $120,000 for singles and $180,000 for couples
Southland was the only region where the median income, $56,784, was enough to comfortably cover monthly mortgage repayments. The median house price in Southland is $265,151.
One Roof found that buyers in Christchurch, Wellington, Waikato, Otago, Hawke's Bay, Whanganui and Taranaki could also comfortably afford mortgage repayments - but only if they were purchasing as a couple.
For those purchasing a KiwiBuild home, the prospects are slightly better. The average three-bedroom KiwiBuild home in Auckland will cost no more than $650,000.
As Newshub reported, for the mortgage to make up no more than 30 percent of household costs, the household would need to earn at least $139,706 a year.
Infometrics chief forecaster Gareth Kiernan told Newshub a bank would give a couple on an income of $90,800 a mortgage for a $650,000 house if they paid a 20 percent deposit. That income would need to be higher if a smaller deposit was paid.
Newshub.
