N.Z. houses ‘more expensive’

Press, 21 July 1988, Page 27

N.Z. houses ‘more expensive’

PA Wellington New Zealanders' building new homes have to fork out an average of $15,000 more than their Australian counterparts. According to the Institute of Valuers, it costs a little more than $60,000 to build a basic three-bed-room 93 square metre (1000 sq ft) house in New Zealand. A similar house in Australia would cost $45,000, according to a survey by the Australian Master Builders’ Construction and Housing Association.

To build a similar house in Sydney, where prices have shot ahead of the rest of Australia, would add $5OOO to the cost.

But moving to New Zealand’s most expensive building area, Wellington, pushed the price of the basic house to $71,000. People in the building industry say everyone has known for years that Australian building costs are much lower but no-one has sat down and worked out why. Explanations range from the more competitive market across the Tasman to more productive immigrant workers.

The institute works out its average prices by examining contracts handled by the Housing Corpora-

tion and adjusting them to fit a fixed specification ."model” home. - < “It is a

formula,” the institute’s John Gibson said. “We look at houses that are being built, work out what needs to be changed to bring them into line, with the model and get a price that can be compared around the country.” The Australian Master Builders used a similar system in their survey. Regional variations in building cost range up to 30 per cent in New Zealand — from Rotorua’s $54,000 to Wellington’s $71,000. They also vary considerably in each centre from month to month, said the corporation’s Wellington district valuer, Peter Boswell.

“A lot depends on the state of the market. If a lot of houses are being built there'll be competition among builders and the price comes down.”