New Zealand's house prices are rising again

New Zealand's house prices are rising again, despite the introduction of new lending restrictions in October last year and worsening affordability. Median house prices rose by 3.93% (inflation-adjusted) during the year to Q3 2018, from almost stable prices in the previous year. However in a quarterly basis, house prices fell by 1.59% in Q3 2018. The number of dwellings sold in New Zealand increased 15.5% y-o-y to 6,791 units in October 2018, in contrast with an annual decline of 18.1% in 2017, according to the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ). In Auckland, dwelling sales soared 15.2% over the same period. 'Days to sale' rose by one day to 35 days y-o-y in October 2018. The number of properties available for sale also rose by 5.6% y-o-y to 25,673 units in October 2018.