A new survey has revealed Kiwis now consider flooding and natural disasters to be the second-most important factor when buying or renting a home.
IAG New Zealand released its latest six-monthly analysis of nationwide weather-related insurance claims on Thursday, saying climate change "has hit the housing market".
Price still remains the number one deciding factor but now 90 percent of people want more information on a property's natural hazard risks before signing a deal - up from 55 percent two years ago.
The survey also showed 45 percent of people didn't know where to find hazard risk information.
IAG NZ has since called for "momentum" in work needed to protect Kiwis from climate impacts, so insurance can stay "accessible".
Amanda Whiting, chief executive of IAG NZ, said the survey shows climate-change concern is "front of mind" for Kiwis.
"People have seen the devastation wrought by storms like Cyclone Gabrielle and are much more aware of the risks."
Climate change and natural disaster risk now outrank school zones, public transport and crime rates in terms of importance for buyers.
More than half of respondents said the weather and natural disaster risk was among their top three concerns when buying a home.
And four-in-five people want their councils to provide more information on a property's natural hazard risks - but only two-in-five want their insurers to do the same.
Whiting said IAG NZ intends to be in Aotearoa "for the long-term" as the country faces more severe weather events, but also other hazards such as earthquakes.
"This means claims are becoming more frequent and costly, compounded by inflation, which has led to premium increases," she added.
"Our focus must be on keeping people out of harm's way, so we do not see a repeat of what happened during the summer of 2023."
During the six months to the end of February, IAG New Zealand received more than 6700 weather-related claims.
Waitaha/Canterbury had 37 percent of those, while Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland had just 9 percent of summer's weather claims.
Risk information on natural hazards for various places can be found on council websites, natural hazard portals, Toka Tū Ake/Earthquake Commission, or Te Pū Ao/GNS Science.
Home buyers can also get natural hazard risk information by paying for a LIM Information Memorandum report, an engineer's report or asking a real estate agent.
