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Suburb profile · Southland · NZ

Riversdale-Piano Flat NZ

Riversdale-Piano Flat is in Southland, New Zealand, with population 1,407.

The read

Livability-led

The page gives you enough to keep this suburb in view, but not enough to make a fast conviction call. Use compare mode or the region hub to see whether the mixed picture still holds up against alternatives.

Why it fits

Lower deprivation supports a livability-led read.

Median rent
$300/wk
Rent context available
D1 vs NZ
Population
1,407
1K local footprint
D3 vs NZ
Income
$49K/yr
Median personal income
D8 vs NZ
NZDep
Decile 3
Lower deprivation
D3 vs NZ
Schools
2
matched school context

Area prices & affordability

Median sale price
$540K
+42.5% over 5yr
5.9%YoY
Lower quartile
$424K
Entry-level price
House Price Index
4,425
QV-based HPI
31.1%5yr
Income to buy
6.4x
Years of median income
Annual sales
382
Transactions, TA

Mortgage serviceability

at the 5.69% 2-year fixed rate
Monthly repayment
$2,505/mo
20% deposit, 30-year P&I
Repayment burden
36%
of gross household income
Stress level
Stretched
<30% comfortable · >45% severe
Years to deposit
8.5 yrs
20% deposit at 15% savings

Monthly repayment by fixed term

Floating · 6.15%
$2,632
1-year fixed · 5.26%
$2,388
2-year fixed · 5.69%
$2,505
3-year fixed · 5.86%
$2,551

A territorial-authority estimate: the Southland 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 Riversdale-Piano Flat-specific or borrower-specific figure.

Price trend

1yr +7.0%5yr +19.5%
QV House Price Index (Jan 2007 = 1000)

QV House Price Index for the Southland 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 Southland 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 Riversdale-Piano Flat, not a Riversdale-Piano Flat-specific sale price.

Personal income

$49K personal · yr+18.4% vs Southland suburb median
Personal income distribution (Census 2023 · annual)
$10,000 or less
141
$10,001-$20,000
84
$20,001-$30,000
138
$30,001-$50,000
183
$50,001-$70,000
237
$70,001-$100,000
198
$100,001 or more
99

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-1.0pp since 2013
2013
67% owned
2018
64% owned
2023
66% owned

24.9% of private dwellings were unoccupied on 2023 census night (holiday homes, empty rentals, and vacant stock).

Dwelling condition (occupied dwellings, self-reported)

10% damp (-4pp vs 2018) and 10% with visible mould larger than A4 (-0pp 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

32,800 people · 202335,000 by 2033 (+6.7%)

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

Crime

Rate · per 100k1,659
Total incidents528· 2026-05
  • Assault8717%
  • Burglary22644%
  • Robbery71%
  • Theft19638%

Natural hazards

Earthquake exposure
Low
Proximity to active faults
Nearest active fault
22.4 km
West Nokomai Fault

Earthquake exposure is the distance from Riversdale-Piano Flat'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

10
active listings · ~7.1 per 1,000 residents
100%
entire homes (vs private rooms)
20%
run by multi-listing operators
Investment view Estimated
$205
median nightly (entire home)
22%
estimated occupancy
$13,761
estimated annual revenue (gross)

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

Total2
Students161
State2
  • Riversdale SchoolFull Primary · State
  • Waikaia SchoolFull Primary · State

Investment grade

Bgrade · 64/100 · top 36% of 65New Zealand districts
Peer distributionstronger than 64% of New Zealand districts
WeakerTypicalStronger
Capital growth89
Rental yield33
Stability28

Bar = this suburb's percentile · tick = typical (median) peer

District-level grade across New Zealand territorial authorities, combining 5-year price growth, rental yield (district median rent vs district median price), and stability (price-to-income level + affordability trajectory) via the same three-pillar method with an imbalance penalty. New Zealand has no free suburb-level prices, so this reflects your area's territorial authority. Within-New-Zealand relative, indicative only — not financial advice.

Stronger alternatives nearby

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
1
1 houses · 0 units
75.0%YoY D1 vs NZ

Employment

Employed residents
792
Was 825 in 2018
4.0%vs 2018 D3 vs NZ

Full data detail

Riversdale-Piano Flat Southland — Property Data and Demographics

Riversdale-Piano Flat is a small community in Southland with a population of 1,407 and a median age of 37. Median personal income is $49K per year. The main ethnic groups are European, Māori, Asian. Southland population estimates moved +0.6% in the year ended June 2025, after moving +1.5% in 2024, which should be read as a broader regional movement backdrop rather than suburb-level migration precision. The resident employment base moved from 825 in 2018 to 792 in 2023 (-4.0%), 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 Riversdale-Piano Flat is $300 (300 houses, 0 units). This represents approximately 32% of median weekly personal income.

Livability indicators for Riversdale-Piano Flat: NZDep decile 3 (low deprivation (affluent)); 2 schools with avg EQI 424.

In 2026, Riversdale-Piano Flat recorded 1 building approval (1 house, 0 units), down 75% year-on-year.

Market & money
Livability signalsHeuristics
Rent Affordability32%· Moderate
School QualityEQI 424· Average
DeprivationDecile 3 Low
Development-75% Slowing
Rental marketMBIE
Median rent · wk(1/04/2022)$300
House · wk$300
Rent / income31.8%
Lodgements15
DevelopmentStats NZ
Consents (2026)1
Houses1
YoY change-75%
People & prosperity
DemographicsCensus 23
Population1,407
Median age37
Household size
HH income · yr
Personal income · yr$49,000
Deprivation (NZDep)NZDep23
Less deprived3/10
NZDep score938

1 = least deprived · 10 = most deprived

EthnicityCensus 23
European1,212
Māori174
Asian108
Pacific Peoples27
Top industriesCensus 23
Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing399
Manufacturing51
Transport, Postal and Warehousing48
Construction45
Rental, Hiring and Real Estate42
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Sources & freshness
Strong evidence

Riversdale-Piano Flat 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 · 1/04/2022 · Bond market dataset
stable source · automated · every update · monthly
Available
Schools
MoE school directory · 2 schools matched
stable source · automated · every update · nightly
Available
Hospitals
Pinned Health NZ public hospital snapshot · No linked local hospital coverage
medium stability · mixed acquisition · snapshot · mixed
Missing
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.

Riversdale-Piano Flat FAQ

Common questions
  1. What is the typical weekly rent in Riversdale-Piano Flat?

    The median weekly rent in Riversdale-Piano Flat is $300/wk, based on the MBIE market rent dataset. The current rent signal is rent context available.

  2. What does the rent signal say about Riversdale-Piano Flat?

    Rent context available: Riversdale-Piano Flat has usable rent context. 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 Riversdale-Piano Flat?

    QuickProperty's livability signals for Riversdale-Piano Flat show: Moderate, Average, Low. These are based on rent affordability, school EQI, NZDep deprivation index, and transport access.

  4. Where does QuickProperty get its data for Riversdale-Piano Flat?

    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 Riversdale-Piano Flat 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.