A law change stopping foreign investors buying New Zealand houses could have unintended consequences.

House prices dropped on Auckland's Waiheke Island last year for the first time in six years, says Waiheke Real Estate manager and salesperson Paul Brisbane.

The asking price of homes in the Queenstown Lakes and Central Otago region is the highest in the country, according to new statistics.

The property market appears to be holding its breath ahead of major changes to lending, one economist says.

A housing crisis looms in Tauranga with house prices soaring 464 per cent in over the last 16 years while household income increased just 129 per cent a new report revealed.

Owning a pet while renting isn't without its challenges, as pet-friendly properties are rare and in high demand.

Real estate agents have been kept on their toes this year, the Real Estate Institute says.

The perfect balance in price is believed to be behind the surging popularity of lifestyle blocks in Manawatū.

Labour's one step closer to banning overseas buyers from purchasing existing homes.

"None of us can stay, because none of us can afford that."