Another release of housing figures shows the median price for an Auckland home is now $842,500, a rise of 14 percent for the year.

However the Central Otago Lakes has seen the biggest percentage rise for year - 41 percent.

The figures from the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) are taken from reported sales by real estate agents for August.

They show a continuing struggle for listings.

REINZ spokesperson Bryan Thomson says: "We have been highlighting the lack of inventory for some time, and it continues to be a major contributing factor in the volume of sales across all regions. This is particularly so in Auckland, where inventory levels are at historic lows."

Central Otago Lakes was the standout performer (up 41 percent), followed by Bay of Plenty/Waikato (up 23 percent) and Manawatu/Wanganui (up 15 percent).

The total value of residential sales including sections for August was $4.481 billion. More than 60 percent of the properties sold for under $600,000 and 13.7 percent sold for more than $1 million.

Statistics from QV last week put the average Auckland house value at more than $1 million, but the average price can be skewed by higher or lower prices which are not representative of the bulk of the sales figures..

The REINZ figures uses a median price, which is a different way of viewing the data, and puts the house sale price at the exact middle of the data range.

Newshub.