Property Market
5 min read
What's happening with Tararua house prices?
Council area of Manawatu-Wanganui
Author: Ed McKnight
Resident Economist, with a GradDipEcon and over five years at Opes Partners, is a trusted contributor to NZ Property Investor, Informed Investor, Stuff, Business Desk, and OneRoof.
Reviewed by: Laine Moger
Journalist and Property Educator with six years of experience, holds a Bachelor of Communication (Honours) from Massey University.
What's happening to Tararua house prices?
The average price of a Tararua property is $422,012 (QV, January 2026).
Tararua house prices are down 3.02% over the last three months (REINZ). And they are 4.20% down over the last 12 months.
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Quick Facts
- The average price of a Tararua property is $422,012 (QV, January 2026)
- Over the last 3 months property prices in Tararua have gone down 3.02%
- Tararua property prices increased 5.76% per year (on average) in the 20 years between February 2006 - February 2026 (REINZ)
- The average rent in Tararua is $450 per week (Tenancy Services, January 2026)
How are Tararua property prices changing?
Tararua house prices soared after the Covid-19 pandemic began. House prices started out 39% below the eventual peak of the market.
However, after that peak in February 2022, house prices fell 22.12% before bottoming out in June 2023.
Today, Tararua house prices are down 19.13% compared to their peak. That means prices have risen 3.84% since the bottom of the market.
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Where is Tararua in its property cycle?
At the absolute bottom of its property cycle, Tararua was 33.85% undervalued.
Today, property prices in Tararua are overvalued 20.22%.
That suggests there is a selling opportunity in Tararua.
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Tararua suburb prices
I track the value of 4 suburbs in Tararua. The most expensive suburb is Pahiatua, which has an average house value of $429,950. While the most affordable suburb is Eketahuna, which has an average house value of $371,050.
Over the last 24 months of all Tararua suburbs (January 2024 - January 2026, Dannevirke had the fastest-growing house prices. They have gone up 2.00% over that period.
The suburb that fell the fastest over that period was Eketahuna. Property values in this suburb fell by 1.79% over those 2 years.
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What is the Tararua rental market like?
Here's how rents are changing in Tararua. Over the last four years (January 2022 - January 2026) the median rent has gone up $80 a week. That's 5.02% a year (on average).
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Are properties selling above or below CV in Tararua?
One of the most common questions I get asked is: 'Ed, are properties selling above or below their Capital Value (CV)?'
Some call it the RV (Rateable Value) or GV (Government Value).
Why do people care? Well, if you go on TradeMe (or another website), you’ll almost always see the council’s valuation for the property. So even if the seller hasn't advertised a price, you can get a feel for what the property might sell for.
This table shows whether the average property is selling above or below CV across Manawatu-Wanganui.
The area in Manawatu-Wanganui selling the highest vs CV is Whanganui District where house prices are current selling 6% above CV.
The area in Manawatu-Wanganui selling the lowest vs CV is Ruapehu District where house prices are selling 6% below CV.
Other property markets to look into
If you found this article useful, then you might also like our analyses on the other property markets in New Zealand. You can read all about the Manawatu-Wanganui property market here.
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This property market information is for your general information. It’s not financial advice. See here for details about our Financial Advice Provider Disclosure. So Opes isn’t telling you what to do with your own money.
We’ve made every effort to make sure the information is accurate. But property markets change, and we occasionally get the odd fact wrong. Make sure you do your own research or talk to a financial adviser before making any investment decisions.
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