GLOPRAGlobal Property Radar

New Zealand: average weekly rent reaches NZD 636, up 1.9% over the year

New Zealand's national average weekly asking rent reached NZD 636 in September, up 1.9% on the year, led by Central Otago and the Lakes District at 7.0%.

The facts

  • The national average weekly rent reached NZD 636 in September, up 1.9% on the same month last year.
  • Central Otago and the Lakes District recorded the largest increase, up 7.0% year on year to NZD 858 a week.
  • Canterbury rents climbed 5.8% to NZD 597, Otago 5.3% to NZD 581 and the West Coast 5.4% to NZD 478.
  • Marlborough also outpaced the national increase, rising 3.4% to NZD 577.
  • Auckland held steady, up 1.2% year on year to NZD 695.

What it means for your money

  • Auckland's average asking price fell below NZD 1 million for the first time in six years. Rents there still rose 1.2%.
  • The spread is wide: 7.0% in Central Otago and the Lakes District against a 1.9% national average. Location sets the income path more than the national number does.
  • Glopra's New Zealand data puts the take on rental income at 14.06%. The scale is progressive with no tax-free band and no flat expense allowance, so gross rent is taxed from the first New Zealand dollar.
  • A sitting tenancy does not reprice with the market. The rise shows up on a new listing first and on an existing holding only at the next review.

What to watch

  • These are weekly asking rents from new listings on one portal, not a register of signed tenancies, so the series can swing with the mix advertised.

Sources: The New Zealand Property Report Rental, September 2026, published 6 October 2026 https://www.realestate.co.nz/news/property-market-news/new-zealand-rental-property-market-2026-september

Market data: New Zealand