- Wealthy international business owners with golden visas are driving demand in the luxury rental market.
- Max Thomson says some pay up to $40,000 a week, though most rentals are around $2000.
- Auckland and Queenstown are popular, with properties often used by Hollywood for film productions.
Wealthy international business owners with golden visas are driving demand in the luxury rental space, with some at the upper end paying $20,000 to $40,000 a week for a home that could include the use of a chef and housekeeping.
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The Government recently relaxed the overseas buyer ban rules to allow Active Investor Plus visa holders, the so-called golden visa, to buy a home worth $5 million and over.
Max Thomson, managing director of Alba Property Management, said wealthy internationals sometimes choose to rent first to get a taste of New Zealand and decide where they might want to buy.
While some paid up to $40,000 a week for a rental, he said those eye-watering weekly rents were not the norm, with most of his company’s stock priced around $2000 a week.
Not all tenants were wealthy overseas investors, either. With film production booming, Hollywood also regularly comes calling, looking for properties for actors, producers, set designers and other crew.
This beach house on Blomfield Spa, in Auckland’s Takapuna, was sold to a New Zealand buyer last year for around $18m. It can now be rented at $8000 a week. Photo / Supplied
The stars of A Minecraft Movie. The blockbuster was shot in Auckland in 2024, with cast and crew all needing accommodation. Photo / Getty Images
Thomson declined to name any Hollywood stars but said his company tended to always have “filmies” on the client list.
A range of luxury properties is on offer, from the beaches and suburbs of Auckland to the hills of Queenstown.
At the time of writing, the most expensive listing on the Alba website was a Crown Terrace four-bedroom, three-bathroom property in Queenstown going for $8750 a week.
The house featured beautiful interiors, was complemented by stunning global artwork and was available for mid- to long-term stays of three months-plus, the listing said.
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Another listing, this one described as one of Takapuna’s most exclusive beachfront homes, was going for $8000 a week. OneRoof reporting shows that the house on Blomfield Spa was sold last year for around $18m.
Along with five air-conditioned bedrooms, the property offered a resort-style marble pool and spa overlooking Takapuna Beach.
Thomson told OneRoof that many of the international executives who rented did so for three to six months, or sometimes longer. Many arrived with property and business investment top of mind, and other visa-holders also rented first.
“There are all sorts of visas that are encouraging internationals to come into the country. We get a lot of people that come in for 12 months, but they’re not allowed to purchase for 12 months, so they’ll rent for the first 12 months and then during that period of time, they’ll be looking to buy.”
A four-bedroom luxury home on Crown Terrace, in Queenstown, is for rent at $8750 a week. Photo / Supplied
His business worked with nice, well-kept family homes, sometimes belonging to people who had downsized but had not sold the house yet, or people who had gone travelling.
At the very top echelon, tenants were typically business owners from affluent overseas markets such as the United States, Hong Kong or Dubai.
“There’s big money coming into the country,” Thomson said.
“That’s the Government incentivising money to come into the country – that’s what the golden visa is. It’s encouraging foreign investment, and when an international comes into New Zealand, someone from the US or someone from Europe, they double their money straight away. The New Zealand dollar is not that strong.”
New Zealand’s reputation as a safe and stable country was a major drawcard, particularly amid the current global uncertainty.
“I think we’ve seen more people coming our way over the last few years because people aren’t that comfortable with what they’re seeing around the world.
“It’s just been building up, the chaotic-ness and the uncertainty. It can be scary for people, what’s happening.
“New Zealand’s obviously seen as a safe place and New Zealand has always been seen as a safe place, but now probably more so.”
While Queenstown remained popular for short-term stays, most long-term international renters were setting up base in Auckland.
A $40,000-a-week rental would typically be a high-spec waterfront home, often furnished and sometimes including services such as housekeeping or a chef, though arrangements varied.
As well as international businesspeople, there were “heaps” of movies being filmed, Thomson said.
“There’s a lot of blockbusters. A lot of filmies come to New Zealand because it’s more cost-effective and you’ve also got the beautiful New Zealand scenery, where you can go and find some pretty remote spots in the mountains and do all sorts of filming, so New Zealand’s a good spot for Hollywood.”
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