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Suburb profile · Canterbury · NZ

Ashburton Central NZ

Ashburton Central is in Canterbury, New Zealand, with population 162.

Limited data

Thin-context

This page still helps with local context, but the evidence stack is too thin for a clean suburb-level call. Use nearby alternatives or compare mode before turning it into a shortlist decision.

What to check

The page is thin enough that nearby alternatives should be checked before shortlisting. Small local population makes the signal set more fragile.

Median rent
$480/wk
Income-stretched rent market
D2 vs NZ
Population
162
162 local footprint
D1 vs NZ
Income
$30K/yr
Median personal income
D1 vs NZ
NZDep
Decile 6
Mid-range deprivation
D6 vs NZ
Schools
1
matched school context

Area prices & affordability

Median sale price
$542K
+43.4% over 5yr
0.2%YoY
Lower quartile
$453K
Entry-level price
House Price Index
4,110
QV-based HPI
35.5%5yr
Income to buy
6.5x
Years of median income
Annual sales
719
Transactions, TA

Mortgage serviceability

at the 5.69% 2-year fixed rate
Monthly repayment
$2,514/mo
20% deposit, 30-year P&I
Repayment burden
36%
of gross household income
Stress level
Stretched
<30% comfortable · >45% severe
Years to deposit
8.7 yrs
20% deposit at 15% savings

Monthly repayment by fixed term

Floating · 6.15%
$2,642
1-year fixed · 5.26%
$2,397
2-year fixed · 5.69%
$2,514
3-year fixed · 5.86%
$2,561

A territorial-authority estimate: the Ashburton District median sale price on a 20% deposit and 30-year loan, against the TA median household income implied by HUD's income-to-buy ratio, at RBNZ new-mortgage rates. A market-wide guide, not a Ashburton Central-specific or borrower-specific figure.

Price trend

1yr +4.7%5yr +32.9%
QV House Price Index (Jan 2007 = 1000)

QV House Price Index for the Ashburton District territorial authority (monthly, Jan 2007 = 1000). A valuation-based index of price movement over time — distinct from the actual median sale price above.

Years of median household income to buy

Figures are for the Ashburton District territorial authority (as at 2026-03). New Zealand has no free suburb-level sale-price series, so these are TA-wide medians from HUD Local Housing Statistics (LINZ District Valuation Roll + Stats NZ) — a market backdrop for Ashburton Central, not a Ashburton Central-specific sale price.

Personal income

$30K personal · yr-26.7% vs Canterbury suburb median
Personal income distribution (Census 2023 · annual)
$10,000 or less
18
$10,001-$20,000
18
$20,001-$30,000
33
$30,001-$50,000
21
$50,001-$70,000
18
$70,001-$100,000
18
$100,001 or more
15

Median individual income. NZ has no suburb-level household-income or sale-price data, so this is a personal-income benchmark, not a household-affordability measure. Distribution covers people aged 15+ with stated income; counts are randomly rounded to base 3.

Housing stock and tenure

Home ownership over three censuses+5.4pp since 2013
2013
57% owned
2018
55% owned
2023
63% owned

11.1% of private dwellings were unoccupied on 2023 census night (holiday homes, empty rentals, and vacant stock).

Dwelling condition (occupied dwellings, self-reported)

9% damp (+4pp vs 2018) and 5% with visible mould larger than A4 (-1pp vs 2018).

Investor-specific data (gearing, investor concentration) is not published for NZ suburbs — the tenure trend above is the available investor signal.

Population outlook

36,100 people · 202339,200 by 2033 (+8.6%)

Stats NZ subnational projection (2023 base, medium series) for Ashburton District — the finest official projection grain available; suburb-level projections do not exist.

Crime

Rate · per 100k2,801
Total incidents973· 2026-05
  • Assault11812%
  • Burglary22323%
  • Sexual Assault283%
  • Theft59362%

Natural hazards

Earthquake exposure
Low
Proximity to active faults
Nearest active fault
32.5 km
Montalto Fault

Earthquake exposure is the distance from Ashburton Central's centre to the nearest mapped active fault (GNS Science NZ Active Faults Database) — an area estimate, not a site-specific seismic assessment. NZ's full ground-shaking model (NSHM) is not available as a queryable map layer.

Short-term rentals

1
active listings
100%
entire homes (vs private rooms)
0%
run by multi-listing operators

Active Airbnb listings point-mapped to this suburb from Inside Airbnb (CC BY 4.0). Occupancy and revenue are estimates from Inside Airbnb's San Francisco model (review-rate proxy, minimum-stay assumption, occupancy capped at 70%) — they are gross, indicative, and not a guarantee of returns. Short-stay letting is subject to state and local regulation.

Schools

Total1
Students244
State1
  • Ashburton Borough SchoolFull Primary · State

Stronger alternatives nearby

Cheaper to rent

lower weekly rent · cross-TA

Higher income

personal median · cross-TA

Less deprived

lower NZDep decile · cross-TA

Alternatives are similar-rent suburbs (0.6–1.6x this suburb's median rent) in other territorial authorities that exceed it on the named metric. Indicative — not financial advice.

Building activity

Latest consents
0
0 houses · 0 units
100.0%YoY

Employment

Employed residents
72
Was 66 in 2018
9.1%vs 2018 D1 vs NZ

Full data detail

Ashburton Central Canterbury — Property Data and Demographics

Ashburton Central is a small community in Canterbury with a population of 162 and a median age of 58. Median personal income is $30K per year. The main ethnic groups are European, Pacific Peoples, Asian. Canterbury population estimates moved +1.1% in the year ended June 2025, after moving +2.1% in 2024, which should be read as a broader regional movement backdrop rather than suburb-level migration precision. The resident employment base moved from 66 in 2018 to 72 in 2023 (+9.1%), which should be read as a census-to-census employment backdrop rather than a live jobs series. Te Waihanga's December 2025 Pipeline snapshot tracked over 12,000 NZ infrastructure initiatives, with more than 2,700 under construction and transport taking 52% of projected 2026 pipeline spend, which should be read as a broader national delivery backdrop rather than a suburb-specific project list.

Median weekly rent in Ashburton Central is $480 (0 houses, 0 units). This represents approximately 82% of median weekly personal income.

Livability indicators for Ashburton Central: NZDep decile 6 (moderate deprivation); 1 school with avg EQI 458; 1 hospital nearby.

In 2026, Ashburton Central recorded 0 building approvals (0 houses, 0 units), down 100% year-on-year.

Market & money
Livability signalsHeuristics
Rent Affordability82% Stretched
School QualityEQI 458· Average
DeprivationDecile 6· Moderate
Development-100% Slowing
Rental marketMBIE
Median rent · wk(1/04/2025)$480
Rent / income82.1%
Lodgements6
DevelopmentStats NZ
Consents (2026)0
YoY change-100%
People & prosperity
DemographicsCensus 23
Population162
Median age58
Household size
HH income · yr
Personal income · yr$30,400
Deprivation (NZDep)NZDep23
Less deprived6/10
NZDep score999

1 = least deprived · 10 = most deprived

EthnicityCensus 23
European126
Pacific Peoples24
Asian15
Māori12
Top industriesCensus 23
Transport, Postal and Warehousing12
Manufacturing9
Retail Trade9
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing6
Construction6
Area & amenity
Local amenitiesOSM
Supermarkets5
Pharmacies2
GP / clinics0
Fuel stations3
Cafes & dining23
countdown2
new world1
Hospitals · Ashburton DistrictMoH
Ashburton HospitalPublic Hospital · in suburb
Shortlist workspace

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Current status
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Sources & freshness
Strong evidence

Ashburton Central has enough direct local evidence for a first-pass decision.

NZ suburb pages combine Stats NZ, MBIE, MoE, GTFS, and pinned service coverage. The key difference is that some items are direct feeds, while others are fallback or snapshot layers.

RENT POSTURE
Rent is using MBIE bond data when present.

Treat current rent as a decision input, not as a guaranteed market quote.

HOSPITAL POSTURE
Hospital coverage comes from an official pinned snapshot.

This is a trusted coverage layer, but it is still a pinned snapshot rather than a live facility API.

TRANSPORT POSTURE
Transport is feed-based and depends on GTFS bundle coverage.

It is good for stop presence and local network context, but not a guarantee that every operator or schedule is equally current.

Data status
Weekly rent
MBIE rental bond data · 1/04/2025 · Bond market dataset
stable source · automated · every update · monthly
Available
Schools
MoE school directory · 1 schools matched
stable source · automated · every update · nightly
Available
Hospitals
Pinned Health NZ public hospital snapshot · 1 hospitals in coverage
medium stability · mixed acquisition · snapshot · mixed
Available
Transport
NZ GTFS bundle · No matched local transport stops
medium stability · mixed acquisition · snapshot · mixed
Missing
Building consents
Stats NZ building consents CSV · 2026 · Annual release series
Available
Demographic baseline
Stats NZ Census 2023 · Population, income, and demographic baseline
stable source · manual file · snapshot · census-cycle
Available
Available means a direct local source is linked. Verify means the page is using a weaker fallback or coverage-only snapshot, especially Census rent fallback or pinned hospital coverage.
Sparse locality note

This page stays indexable because Ashburton Central still carries enough real local context to help with NZ suburb discovery. It should still be read as a lighter locality brief, not as a fully covered suburb profile.

WHY IT LOOKS LIGHTER
This suburb has a very small Census footprint.

Very small-population places can still matter locally, but they behave more like narrow locality reads than broad suburb decision pages.

WHAT IS MISSING
Coverage is lighter across transport stops.

Coverage is thinner on transport stops; don't let a single sparse read define the suburb.

BEST NEXT STEP
Use this page to frame the locality, then compare or zoom back out.

If it still looks worth a look, use compare, the region hub, or a larger nearby suburb to check the story against denser coverage.

Page status
INDEXED WITH LIGHTER COVERAGE

The page still has enough real suburb context to remain searchable, but some market and service layers are too light for a full-confidence read.

HOW TO READ THIS PAGE

Use this page to frame the locality, then pressure-test the story with compare, the region hub, or a nearby better-covered suburb before treating it as complete.

Stronger nearby reads

If Ashburton Central feels too thin on its own, use these nearby suburbs as stronger local reads before treating it as a full shortlist call.

Ashburton West most similar
similar rent profile similar deprivation profile similar income profile

pop +800 · rent +$20/wk · income same $

Similar local read: useful for context, but still compare the actual market signals.

Allenton South most similar
similar rent profile similar deprivation profile similar income profile

pop +2000 · rent +$30/wk · income +$12K

Similar local read: useful for context, but still compare the actual market signals.

Tinwald South most similar
similar rent profile similar deprivation profile similar income profile

pop +2100 · rent +$10/wk · income +$6K

Similar local read: useful for context, but still compare the actual market signals.

Ashburton Central FAQ

Common questions
  1. What is the typical weekly rent in Ashburton Central?

    The median weekly rent in Ashburton Central is $480/wk, based on the MBIE market rent dataset. The current rent signal is income-stretched rent market.

  2. What does the rent signal say about Ashburton Central?

    Income-stretched rent market: Weekly rent screens at about 82% of annual income. Use this as a suburb screening signal before comparing candidates; the matching rent ranking can provide broader market context.

  3. What is the livability profile for Ashburton Central?

    QuickProperty's livability signals for Ashburton Central show: Stretched, Average, Moderate. These are based on rent affordability, school EQI, NZDep deprivation index, and transport access.

  4. Where does QuickProperty get its data for Ashburton Central?

    Housing data comes from the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ). Demographics are from Stats NZ Census 2023. Schools data uses the Ministry of Education Equity Index (EQI). The deprivation score uses NZDep2018. Transport data is sourced from GTFS feeds.

  5. How often is the Ashburton Central data updated?

    RBNZ macro data updates with each deploy. Demographics are from NZ Census 2023. School EQI scores are from the Ministry of Education latest release.