Canterbury regional property market insights

The average property price in Canterbury/Waitaha in November 2024 was $717,900, according to our most recent Property Price Index. This marked a 0.9% increase in the cost of buying a home in Canterbury compared to October 2024, and a 2.2% increase compared to November last year.

The overall number of Canterbury properties available for sale on Trade Me Property in November 2024 was 6,061, this was up from 5,877 in October and up from 5,001 in November 2023.

Our latest Rental Price Index showed Canterbury rents at $570, up slightly from $560 hit in October 2024. The regional average was up 1.8% month-on-month, and 3.6% year-on-year. The average cost of renting a home in Christchurch City/Ōtautahi was slightly lower than the regional average, at $560.

In more good news for renters in the Canterbury region, there are also currently plenty of options out there at the moment. In November, there were a total of 2,722 rental properties available in Canterbury on Trade Me Property. This was up from October, when 2,579 rental listings were advertised, and marked a huge jump from 2,226 in November 2023.

Among people surveyed in our 2024 Property Pulse survey* who were seeking to buy a home in the Canterbury region:

17% were currently in the process of buying a home.

15% were just thinking about buying a property.

19.7% were looking to buy a property in the next year.

15.9% were looking to buy a property in the next 1-2 years.

Of the respondents who’d ideally buy a property in the Canterbury region, 45.4% agreed that now is a good time to buy a property in Canterbury. By percentage, would-be buyers in the Canterbury region say they would be most willing to compromise on either the size of the section/land or the size of the garden/outdoor space in order to stay within their buying budget, compared to a range of four other specific options including size of the property, property condition and type of property.

Interested in how quickly homes change hands in Canterbury? Of the respondents looking to sell a home in the Canterbury region:

• 17.6% had owned their current home for more than five years.
• 18.7% had owned their current home for 3-5 years.
• 19.5% had owned their current home for 1-2 years.
• 30% had owned their current home for 6-12 months.
• 4.5% had lived in their current home for less than 6 months.

Of respondents looking to sell a home in the Canterbury region:

• 18.7% were currently in the process of selling a property.
• 16.8% were just thinking about selling a property.
• 20.3% were looking to sell a property in the next year.
• 13.9% were looking to sell a property in the next 1-2 years.

Within its approximately 45,346 square kilometres, Canterbury/Waitaha contains some of Aotearoa’s greatest natural and cultural wonders. Think of the towering peak of Aoraki/Mt. Cook, the dolphins and whales that make their home in the wildlife haven of Kaikōura and the other-wordly turquoise waters and glittering stars of Lake Tekapo.

The region also contains the secondest largest urban centre in Aotearoa, Christchurch/Ōtautahi, which provides substantial job opportunities for its residents. According to the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment Canterbury represented 13% of New Zealand's total employment in 2022. Of these, 50,835 jobs, or 14.6%, were self-employed. The sectors with the highest employment contributions in Canterbury in 2022, according to MBIE, were:

• Construction (11.3%)
• Health Care and Social Assistance (11%)
• Manufacturing (10.6%)
• Retail Trade (9.4%)

As well as Christchurch City/Ōtautahi, Canterbury also incorporates the following districts:

• Ashburton

• Banks Peninsula

• Hurunui

• Mackenzie

• Selwyn 

• Timaru

• Waimakariri

• Waimate

In 2023, 12.8% of the population (around 666,300) of Aotearoa lived in Canterbury, according to Statistics New Zealand, with the number of residents growing by 0.7% in that year, above the national average growth rate (according to MBIE). This gives the region a population density of approximately 15 people per 15 km².

*Data from Trade Me Property Pulse Survey 2024. 1,572 total responses, 342 responses from the Canterbury Region.