Brad Olsen: Infometrics Principal Economist on the new deals set to lure in Auckland renters

Househunters are being offered $500 grocery vouchers or a free week's rent by Auckland landlords keen to lure them in.

This comes as new TradeMe data shows the number of new rental listings in the city in February was up 34 percent on the same time last year - from 8049 to 10,805.

Infometrics Principal Economist Brad Olsen says people looking for rentals have more choices than ever, because there's less demand.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
For renters. We're hearing reports that landlords are trying to
secure new tenants by offering them grocery vouchers or a
week's free rent to lure them in. This comes as
trade me stats show the number of new rental listings
in Auckland was up thirty four percent in February compared
to a year ago. Last week on Friday, actually we
told you about rents coming down in the main centers

(00:21):
in Auckland and in Wellington in particular. Brad Olsen is
the Informetric's principal economists. Brad, Hello, good evening. So it
sounds like affordability potentially getting a bit better for renters.
We had that seek data out last week and now
we've got this story about incentives being offered.

Speaker 2 (00:38):
Yeah, it does certainly seem like there's a bit more
opportunity out there when it comes to the rental market.
People who are still in their rents that you know
they signed up a while ago. It's not like you
can easily negotiate your rent to go low with your
existing landlord. But for people who are casting about for
a rental at the moment, there does seem to be
generally a fair bit more choice going on, and a

(00:58):
bit of down with pressure and areas on rent prices
because well, there's just not quite as much demand and
there's now more people who are offering a house to
rent than there are people who are looking to rent,
at least in the short term.

Speaker 1 (01:11):
Why has it gone up so much in Auckland in particular,
Trade me reckons that listings up thirty four percent in
February compared to a year ago. Me And is that
just seasonal stuff or is this something going on here?

Speaker 2 (01:21):
I think there's some underlying trends coming through because you're
seeing not quite the same degree, but you're seeing that
sort of similar trend emerging in Wellington. I know that
the flat that I currently rent, you know, if it
was relisted today, we wouldn't be paying nearly as much
as we currently are. So there's definitely a feeling that
there's both a bit of supply and demand going on here.

(01:41):
You've got a few more people that are going Look,
I'm obviously wanting to list my house on the market
to try and get some people in, and that's probably
because of where mortgage rates and similar have been. But
I think it's just as important that you've got again
the fact that when it comes to New Zealand is
having left the country and similar again, that level of
demand is just not quite as there as it was before.

(02:04):
You've got more people now who are not looking to
rent for whatever reason, and all of a sudden there's
more rentals on the market. Both of those I think
are linked, but overall they mean that there are a
few more deals to be done and a lot of
landlords who are going Actually, I need to figure out
how to fill the space, because it's not like before
when as a landlord, people walked into your house and said,
you know, please pick me and you had a bidding war.

(02:25):
Now it's more of a how do I make sure
I've got a renter that can fit in?

Speaker 1 (02:29):
Yeah? Interesting, Brad, Thank you very much for that. Brad
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