On 7 June 2018, Stats NZ will publish statistics on property transfers by New Zealanders and overseas people.
The statistics will include information on the citizenship or visa status of people transferring property (including homes) in New Zealand. They will also include information on the tax residency of people and companies involved in property transfers.
The data in this release is mainly derived from land transfer tax statements (LTTS). LTTS collect tax-related data when people buy, sell, or transfer property, to ensure people comply with their tax obligations. They also gather some information for housing policy purposes.
Stats NZ is taking over the analysis and publication of property transfer statistics from Land Information New Zealand (LINZ). LINZ has produced the quarterly Property transfers and tax residency reports since 2016 using LTTS data, and has helped Stats NZ replicate their methodology and enhance the data series.
“As statistical releases are part of Stats NZ’s core business, we’ve worked with LINZ to take over their reporting on property transfers,” property statistics manager Melissa McKenzie said.
“Some new features of the Stats NZ releases will be the time series of the data, and details of home transfers by their location in New Zealand.”
These statistics will appear on the Stats NZ release calendar, and be presented in the same format as the rest of Stats NZ’s information releases.
For the first time, the release will separate out property transfers to resident-visa holders. Previously these buyers and sellers were in the same category as New Zealand citizens. This additional detail will help provide a fuller picture of who is buying and selling property in New Zealand.
Property transfer statistics: March 2018 quarter will be published at 10:45am on 7 June 2018.
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