Wellington landlords are offering incentives – including grocery vouchers and periods of free rent – as they compete for tenants in a renters’ market.
Wellington renter Cait MacLennan said she gave notice for her previous flat with nowhere to go, but easily found a new place to call home.
“Because the rental market’s been good at the moment, from what we’ve heard from all of our mates and stuff, we felt really confident that we could find a flat before our four weeks’ notice was up,” she told 1News.
“We definitely did that with about two weeks to spare, I think, and we had a lot of options which was awesome.”
The number of rental listings in the capital is up 40% on a year ago, according to the latest Trade Me figures from November – and the highest number of listings on the site since 2020.
It’s forcing landlords to compete for tenants.
“They’re offering things like free grocery vouchers, maybe a couple of weeks’ free rent, or they’re offering to contribute costs towards moving costs,” Tommy’s Property Management’s Harrison Vaughan said.
It’s a shift in balance from several years ago, when those on the hunt for accommodation were queuing to view houses.
“We’ve seen a cycle for a while where things have previously been in favour of landlords and those cycles don’t last forever. At the moment, we’re shifting back in favour of tenants,” CoreLogic chief economist Kelvin Davidson said.
The construction boom has added to the housing stock, particularly in areas such as the Kapiti Coast, where a major highway has been built.
“So many people are now moving out of the city as well, which is then decreasing pressure as well in a city rental market,” Vaughan said.
It’s not just in Wellington – across the country, it’s a tenants’ market, meaning downward pressure on rents.
“Not saying rents are cheap in Wellington, or that rents are cheap in Auckland — just that the growth that we have seen in previous years has come down,” Davidson said.
