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HOUSING demand from migrants and rising household income have boosted house prices almost 12 per cent in the past year.
Prices have been rising for seven straight quarters, a Government report shows.
The national house price index for April provisionally rose 2.6 per cent, following a 3.5 per cent increase in the three months to December, the Quotable Value New Zealand report showed.
The national residential median price for April was at $203,00, up $3,000 in a month and $14,000 up over the previous 12 months.
The QVNZ report showed New Zealand had 42,050 migrants in the year to March, boosting demand for homes.
Rising wages and a jobless rate near a 15-year low also under-pinned record numbers of house sales. Interest rates were cut in April after being unchanged since June last year.
Property consultant Kieran Trass said in the report that New Zealand was experiencing a "strong undercurrent of house price growth , right across the country".
But signs of a plateau in both sales volumes and price growth were becoming evident, Mr Trass of Hybrid Property Consulting, said.
Real Estate Institute figures showed that about 9000 homes were sold in April at a median price of $203,000, compared with the 10,747 homes sold in March at a median price of $200,000.
The national residential dwelling property market has reached record sales value and volume highs according to the latest statistics released by the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ).
REINZ Institute National President, Mr. Graeme Woodley said: "Despite some market commentators predicting a downturn for the property market, March's figures only reinforce our belief that the residential market is both stable and healthy.
"Certainly the level of activity recorded indicates that the New Zealand public still has an active interest in property, not just as a home, but also as an investment," he commented.
"Our members nation-side have reported a shortage of listings with the median days to sell falling from 36 days in April 2002 to just 29 days this April."
Meanwhile, the lifestyle market continues to run hot across the country, with activity in the Auckland area particularly strong, with the average price of house and land running at $451,812.
In adjacent Northland the house and land average price was $254,790; Hamilton, $265,569 and $321,850 in Bay of Plenty.
Down South, the average house and land lifestyle package was $297,479 in Canterbury (Christchurch) and $333,713 in Otago (Dunedin).