Total residential house sales rose sharply in February, compared with a 10 year low-point in January, but seasonally adjusted prices fell and it is taking longer to sell homes as tax-shy investors stay out of the market.

New Zealand's total building work fell 6% in the three months through September, extending its decline for the seventh quarter amid a slump in new construction permits.

Auckland house prices edged up to a 23-month high in November as new listings held above 1,600 and demand was underpinned by stronger migration.

New Zealand home-building approvals jumped last month, extending their gains for a fourth month, ensuring a key element to the nation's economic recovery remains in place as interest rates remain low.

Mortgagee sales, which reached a record in September, will probably continue through 2010 as high levels of household debt and rising unemployment make it harder for kiwis to meet interest payments.

Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard kept the official cash rate unchanged at a record low 2.5%, as expected, and dropped wording in his statement that rates could fall further, stoking speculation borrowing costs will rise sooner as the economy recovers.

New Zealand house prices extended their gains in September, recovering to levels last seen in 2007, as confidence seeps back into the housing market.

Property listings in Auckland rose last month, while prices dipped, a sign that sellers may be gaining enough confidence to return to the market.

The $200 billion rental property sector not only pays no tax, but is actually getting refunds when it might fairly be contributing tax of $500 million to $900 million a year, says a report from the last meeting of the influential Tax Working Group.

A land tax emerges the clear winner over capital gains tax as an option to broaden the tax base more efficiently, simply, and fairly, in documents released today from the Victoria University-led Tax Working Group.

New Zealand home-building work sank to an eight-year low in the second quarter, lagging behind non-residential construction for the first time since the government statistician began the series in 1989.

New Zealand housing market confidence has improved, with expectations for prices moving up to about neutral and more people deeming it a good time to buy, according to the ASB Housing Confidence survey.