Aucklanders build McMansions as land values soar, housing paper notes

Tue, 04 Nov 2014

By Jonathan Underhill Nov. 5 (BusinessDesk) - Auckland land prices have surged ahead of the rest of the country as a proportion of the cost of a new dwelling, spurring owners to almost double the size of their houses in the past four decades and exacerbating a shortfall of properties, according to the Productivity Commission. Land prices in Auckland now account for 60 percent of the cost of a new dwelling, compared to an average 48 percent across the rest of the country, the commission says in its 'Using land for housing' issues paper. It...

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