Regional Rental Review: Grey District

Exploring the Rental Market in Grey District

The Grey District is located on the west coast of the South Island with an estimated population of 14,800 as of 30th June 2024. The town of Greymouth is famous for its old gold and coal mining industry but is also home to pounamu or jade trading. The town is home to 8,000 residents and is named after the first Governor of New Zealand Sir George Grey.  

Now, mining makes up only a small fraction of the local economy. Tourism, agriculture and forestry make up a much larger proportion of the local economy. 

What is happening with rents?

The Grey District goes against the trend of reducing rents across the country. Rents continue to grow steadily. Data from Tenancy Services shows a record high for May 2025 with the median rent being $495 per week compared to $405 per week in May 2024.

Strong rental growth could be down to a slowdown in supply. Bond numbers dropped from a high of 663 bonds lodged in August 2017 to 540 bonds being lodged in July 2022. In May 2025, 558 bonds are lodged with Tenancy Services.  

If you follow the trendline on the graph below, there should be approximately 700 lodged bonds across the region. The reduction of supply would have put extra pressure on rents. However, rents are still low compared to the rest of New Zealand so there is the potential for continued rental growth making the region a hit for investment properties. 

Over the last 12 months, there has been an average of 15 bonds per month being lodged with 14.25 bonds being closed. Go back ten years and you can see how the rental market has changed. Between June 2014 and May 2015, there was an average of 30.75 bonds being lodged with an average of 30.5 bonds being closed.  

The West Coast of New Zealand has some of the best yields in the country. Data from Infometrics1 shows that as of March 2025, the average current house value was $407,178.

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