Christchurch property market insights

The average price of buying a property in Christchurch in September 2024 was $684,500, according to Trade Me Property data. This was a 1.6% increase compared to August 2024, and down 1% on September 2023.

In September, property prices for one- to two-bedroom homes in Christchurch hit a record high of $549,050, a 3.4% increase compared to the same period last year. Additionally, Ōtautahi experienced a rise in the average asking price for units, which climbed 6.1% year-on-year to reach $471,150.

In good news for would-be buyers in Christchurch, in September, there was a 7.4% increase in the number of homes listed on Trade Me Property, compared to August. This meant a total of 2,702 homes were available for sale on our site last month.

If you were looking to rent a property in Christchurch in September, you’d have been looking at an average rental home price of $560. This was down 5.9% on August’s average, but up 1.8% year-on-year.

There were 1,965 Christchurch properties available for rent in September 2024 on our site, compared to 2,100 the month before. While this means a decrease month-on-month, September’s figure was still a substantial increase on the 1,568 available in the same period last year.

Christchurch/Ōtautahi is the largest city in the Canterbury region, home to a population of 396,200, according to the June 2023 census.

There are heaps of reasons to live in Christchurch. Many locations within the city offer stunning views of the Southern Alps, there are beautiful beaches on hand, such as Sumner, and the city itself has a multitude of parks and greenspaces. You’re also well positioned to access other beautiful parts of Te Waipounamu/South Island both close at hand, such as Akaroa, or further afield, such as Lake Tekapo or Aoraki/Mt. Cook.

As the second biggest city in the country, there are also plenty of employment opportunities. According to 2018 data from the Greater Christchurch Partnership, the largest five business sectors in the Greater Christchurch, by number of employees were:

• Health care and social assistance (28,664 employees)
• Manufacturing (25,742)
• Construction (25,153)
• Retail Trade (24,961)
• Professional Scientific and Technical Services (21,069)

Christchurch is a diverse city, with plenty of exciting suburbs, each offering different things to their residents.

The top five most popular Christchurch suburbs by number of searches in September, according to Trade Me Property data were:

• Cashmere

• Merivale

• Fendalton

• Ilam

• St. Albans

If you’re interested in more information to help you decide where to buy in Christchurch, check out this mini-series, where we look at some of the city’s most popular suburbs, and what makes them tick.