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New Zealand Landlords are back in the market, prompted to hunt for properties because of cheap interest rates, according to a recent survey...

Shaun Riley, Chief Executive of Mike Pero Mortgages, said the poll had found landlords looking once again.

The survey of more than 550 investors was conducted by the mortgage business and landlords.co.nz, a website run by Tarawera Publishing and the NZ Property Investor magazine which that firm owns.

Falling interest rates were making residential property investment more attractive, people said.

"It is a good time to buy, both for investors and for private buyers. House prices are cheaper than they have been for a number of years and with falling interest rates, home affordability has improved considerably over the past year," Mr Riley said.

Neil Harris, an Auckland landlord and property manager, said he planned to buy after Christmas but was shutting down for the holidays.

"I bid for what I would have thought was a popular property at a mortgagee sale, my opening bid was a fraction of its value and no one else bid. It was handed in and we're still negotiating but I'll be buying hard," he said.

Mr Harris agreed with the survey's findings and said now was a great time to buy but buyers should not fix loans for longer than six months to a year.

Mortgagee properties were going for "ridiculous" prices, he said, including in Remuera, South Auckland and at Albany.

The survey found nearly two-thirds of people thought rate cuts were making property investment more attractive. Only 5.1 per cent have sold properties in the past six months.

"The survey results showed that 20.5 per cent of property investors expected to buy more property before March 31 next year and another 28.6 per cent expected to buy later in 2009," Mr Riley said.

The new National-led Government will encourage more residential property investment, according to 45 per cent of those surveyed.

A Wizard Home Loans affordability report this week showed a sharp reduction in mortgage rates drove housing to its best level of affordability in many years.

Source: NZ Herald