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Caution is advised for property investors, as New Zealand starts to feel the impact of recent legislative and bank policy changes.

Lenders to consumers are having to take into account all potential changes in an applicant’s income and that is hitting people intending to take maternity/paternity leave along with those approaching retirement.

As 2021 draws to a close, it looks as though we may finally be starting to see that long-anticipated easing of the housing market come to fruition.

Sign JB's petition. The Government has made changes to responsible lending laws to protect vulnerable borrowers, but they have used a sledge hammer instead of a scalpel. This is an example of over reach, and will cause far greater harm to Kiwi homeowners and small businesses than it will protect vulnerable borrowers.

Let’s start with a question, should your bank have the right to judge the way you live? The Government has made law changes to protect vulnerable borrowers that come into effect on 2nd December, but that will have adverse consequences for homeowners and especially first homebuyers.

Whenever things like the global pandemic, the 2008-09 Global Financial Crisis, or tax policy alterations happen such as those announced on March 23, most of us can take a view on what the likely impact will be. Sometimes these views can be horribly wrong.

On March 23 the government surprised everyone with some draconian changes in the ability of property investors to deduct interest expenses when calculating their tax obligations. Will we really see big changes which could stop house prices rising for an extended period as the government would like? No.

This post will start with a little rant and then progress into trying to understand the downstream impacts of a big week for the housing market. Just in case you were under a rock this week, the government announced a major change in housing tax policy.

Newsroom’s Alexia Russell sat down with Chief Squirrel JB to chat about what the Government's recent announcement means for first home buyers. Does it remove the stumbling blocks, or is it still hard as ever for young Kiwis to get onto the property ladder? Are there going to be any unintentional consequences?

I was asked to give a radio interview last week on the topic of the Green Party’s policies which they believe will make a sustained difference in house prices. The timing was perfect as I was just about to put pen to paper for my latest column for Squirrel – so here are my thoughts.

It is now hard to believe that there could be more than a handful of people left in the country thinking the Covid-19 crisis will cause house prices to fall in New Zealand. So what's causing the demand? One thing mainly: the biggest net migration boom New Zealand has ever seen.

This article is split into two sections. We’ll first explore the supply and demand issues, and secondly get into some tips and tricks to consider. So, what drives the housing market and what does that mean post COVID-19?