New Zealand real estate agents charge up to three times as much commission as those in Australia, the UK and US - and now those in Auckland earn up to $10,000 more for the same, or less, work as a decade ago. Is our commission model broken? Morgan Tait asks if one of the country's most contentious industries is about to be disrupted.

I doubt even the success of the recent LookSee initiative has been enough to stave off what I now see as the inevitable. In this business, perception is reality and the perception is that Wreda is not working. I have no doubt it has the ingredients for success, so why has it not been more visibly successful? What happened from the merger of Grow Wellington, Positively Wellington Tourism, Destination Wellington, Positively Wellington Venues and Major Events?

Everybody loves Auckland. Wherever you go in this country, people just love to talk about it. "I never get sick of hearing about Auckland," they will say, "the people there are great". You don't even have to reveal that you're an Aucklander. You can be in a cafe in Wellington, or a pub in Timaru, or a mountain hut. Right out of the blue, they'll just start raving about Aucklanders and everything they like about them – the way they talk, the way they dress, the things they do with their money.

Buyers may be sitting on their hands but prices are holding steady at Auckland's biggest real estate agency. Barfoot & Thompson said the number of properties sold in Auckland in May was low compared to previous years but prices had not dropped.

Some relief for Wellington's housing shortage could come from new apartment blocks in Thorndon and Tawa, but questions are being raised over the affordability of the proposed extra homes. The sites – at 3 George St, Thorndon and 4 William Earp Place, Tawa – have been earmarked by the private owners as new potential Special Housing Areas (SHA). Deputy Mayor Paul Eagle, chairman of the council's housing taskforce, said many councillors wanted to see developers with SHAs include affordable housing in some of their future plans.

Developers are being asked to step up to help solve Wellington's housing crisis by redeveloping inner-city buildings into social housing and affordable apartments. Community housing providers are also being urged by Wellington City Council to convert existing under-utilised buildings.

New Zealand's financial system is sound but housing market vulnerabilities remain a key risk and the central bank still wants to curb high debt-to-income lending if necessary, it said in its twice-yearly financial stability report.

A major retirement village operator is eyeing a former teachers' college campus, while a community group is concerned that could turn the suburb into "God's waiting room".

Wellington's housing bubble has deflated as lending restrictions and election jitters combine with the traditional winter sales slump to trigger a drop in buyer demand.

Anyone who has ever moved house has probably had a moment where they stopped and thought "I am never doing that again". But when it comes to buying and selling real estate, it turns out the longer you can stay in a property, the better off you will be. Moving often eats up a sizeable proportion of any capital gains you could expect to make. If you bought a house in Auckland for $600,000 in April 2015, you might assume, based on Real Estate Institute averages, that it was worth just under $700,000 now. First up, there is the cost of finding a buyer for your property. If you go through an agency, you can expect your agent to sell you a marketing package. This can range from anything from about $800 for the most basic - an ad online, some flyers, booklets and a signboard outside your property - through to $10,000 or more, particularly if you want high-profile print advertising. About $5000 is normal in bigger centres and $2000 in smaller cities. If you do not like the idea of paying for marketing, you can negotiate with an agent - if they are desperate for listings they may be willing to split the bill - or you could choose an agency that does not operate with this model. Then you'll encounter some incidental costs as you get your place ready to go on the market. You might need to pay for carpet cleaning, get someone in to give the garden a good tidy-up and get rid of any rubbish you have lying around. You might also find you want to invest in some finishing touches - rugs, nice bedding, colourful cushions or artwork to bring your living spaces to life or some pot plants to boost the curb appeal of your front door. Set aside $1000 for this if there is nothing major that needs doing. If you need to pay for homestaging, perhaps because you have already shifted out or do not have enough furniture to fill your house, you'll need to pay about $1500 plus GST for five weeks. Once you have an offer, you'll see your really big bill from the agent. On a $700,000 sale, you will pay about $25,000 in commission at the major real estate agencies. There is some variation - Mike Pero would only charge about $20,000 while Bayleys and Leaders would charge more like $30,000. Real estate agencies charge their commission as a percentage of the sale price. Barfoot & Thompson charges 3.95 per cent of the first $300,000 of the sale price, and 2 per cent on the rest, plus GST. LJ Hooker charges 4 per cent up to $350,000 then 2.5 per cent of the balance, plus GST. The commission is usually taken from the deposit that the buyer pays when they put in an offer on your property. You could decide to try to sell the house without an agent. This can be a good option in a hot market but is harder when things are less busy. You'll still need a good marketing budget but you will save on commission. You'll need to decide whether you back your negotiating skills to get you as good a price as an agent would. You'll also need a lawyer to handle the conveyancing, which is usually around $1000 for a straightforward sale. Then you can add in the costs of hiring movers or renting a truck. That means your $700,000 Auckland house would end up costing at least $40,000 to sell - or 40 per cent of any capital gain you experienced over the past two years. In April, Auckland house prices only increased 3 per cent compared to the year before. That means someone buying a $600,000 now would need to stay in it for about two-and-a-half years before their capital gains could cover the costs of the move.