新西兰将于周五重开高端住房市场，允许持有其“黄金签证”身份者购买或建造价值至少NZ$5百万（约3,000,000美元）的房产；该政策与4月重启的Active Investor Plus移民路径相衔接，旨在吸引富裕移民和资本。到2月26日，共有589份申请、1891人，潜在最低投资达NZ$35亿；其中约37%申请人来自美国。此前在前总理Jacinda Ardern时期，即便这些投资者可在新西兰居住，也因外籍买家禁令而不能买房；政府在9月宣布豁免并于周五生效，且在特朗普近期行动后，美国来询问明显升温（Caleb Paterson称4天内收到6个美国真实咨询）。
在政策落地时，新西兰房市仍长期低迷，QV房价指数显示惠灵顿自2022年1月高点回落最多28%，奥克兰回落20%。过去12个月奢侈房交易量偏低，许多业主宁可撤盘也不接受降价，Paterson Luxury的Caleb Paterson称过去18个月约40%的豪宅挂牌未售出。政策确定后，库存回流，原本至少两年未见的“多重竞价”再度出现。Mark Harris则指出，因地缘政治紧张，国际买盘短期内更活跃，美国买家咨询上升。
区域层面出现分化：南岛度假城市Queenstown需求较旺。Mark Harris表示，拥有或申请AIP资格的人群使国际关注度上升，近期Queenstown可见多架私人飞机（并非全部为买房）。其网站流量显示，美国用户同比增加61%，澳大利亚用户同比增加24%。Cotality测算，NZ$5百万以上房产约7,000套，仅占全国家宅约0.4%，其中奥克兰约4,500套、Queenstown约1,250套，但每年通常仅有约350套“奖杯房”挂牌，供给端仍明显受限。
New Zealand will reopen its high-end housing market on Friday, allowing holders of its “golden visa” scheme to buy or build homes worth at least NZ$5 million (about US$3 million). The policy follows the April relaunch of the Active Investor Plus route to attract wealthy migrants and capital; by Feb. 26, there were 589 applications covering 1,891 people, with a potential minimum investment of NZ$3.5 billion, and around 37% of applicants were from the United States. Under former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, foreign buyers were barred from purchasing even though they could live in New Zealand; after an exemption announced in September, the rule now takes effect, while geopolitical friction and the Trump administration’s actions have reportedly increased U.S. inquiries (Caleb Paterson said he received six serious U.S. inquiries in four days).
Even as this change takes effect, New Zealand’s housing market remains in a multi-year slump: the QV House Price Index shows prices down as much as 28% in Wellington and 20% in Auckland from January 2022 peaks. Luxury transactions were weak in the prior 12 months, with many sellers removing listings rather than accepting lower bids; Paterson Luxury’s Caleb Paterson said about 40% of luxury properties listed over the last 18 months were withdrawn without selling. Since policy confirmation, stock has returned to market and multi-offer bidding has reappeared after being absent for at least two years.
Demand is uneven across regions and strongest in Queenstown in the South Island. Mark Harris said private jets have been seen recently, and international interest from buyers with AIP status or applications has strengthened. His firm reports website traffic from the United States is up 61% year-on-year and from Australia up 24% year-on-year. Cotality estimates around 7,000 homes above NZ$5 million, only 0.4% of total housing stock—roughly 4,500 in Auckland and about 1,250 in Queenstown—but only about 350 trophy homes are listed each year, so foreign-buying capacity remains structurally limited.