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Suburb profile · Manawatu-Whanganui · NZ

Papaioea North NZ

Papaioea North is in Manawatu-Whanganui, New Zealand, with population 2,454.

The read

Verify-first

There are enough weaker signals here that you should expect trade-offs, not a clean local story. Compare it directly with stronger nearby suburbs before treating it as a preferred option.

$230/wk
1/04/2021 → 1/01/2026 · 20 periods
Tenancy Services · 1/01/2026
$325
$205
1/04/20211/01/2026
What to check

Higher deprivation should be treated as a local-context caution.

Median rent
$560/wk
Income-stretched rent market
D4 vs NZ
Population
2,454
2K local footprint
D6 vs NZ
Income
$32K/yr
Median personal income
D2 vs NZ
NZDep
Decile 8
Higher deprivation
D8 vs NZ
Schools
1
matched school context

Area prices & affordability

Median sale price
$605K
+6.3% over 5yr
1.5%YoY
Lower quartile
$514K
Entry-level price
House Price Index
3,547
QV-based HPI
5.9%5yr
Income to buy
6.8x
Years of median income
Annual sales
1,615
Transactions, TA
Years of median household income to buy

Figures are for the Palmerston North City territorial authority (as at 2026-02). 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 Papaioea North, not a Papaioea North-specific sale price.

Rent trend depth

Rent cycle positionRents recovering
Low · 2021Peak · 2020

23.3% below peak rent · 12.2% above its low

Rent growth (compound)3-yr +3.9%/yr · 5-yr +2.3%/yr

Rent trend is derived from MBIE tenancy-bond medians and excludes suburbs with too few bonds to be reliable.

Personal income

$32K personal · yr-12% vs Manawatu-Whanganui suburb median

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.

Schools

Total1
Students68
State1
  • Mana TamarikiComposite · State

Livability

40/ 100 livability index

Top 60% most liveable of 1,714New Zealand suburbs.

Everyday access79
Public transport0
Schools & hospitals29

Suburb-level access-density index (not an address-level walk-time score), normalised within New Zealand suburbs. Method based on the Urban Liveability Index (Higgs et al. 2019) and Walk Score — three equal-weighted domains combined with an imbalance penalty.

Building activity

Latest consents
1
1 houses · 0 units
0.0%YoY D1 vs NZ

Employment

Employed residents
1,167
Was 1,122 in 2018
4.0%vs 2018 D6 vs NZ

Full data detail

Papaioea North Manawatu-Whanganui — Property Data and Demographics

Papaioea North is a small suburb in Manawatu-Whanganui with a population of 2,454 and a median age of 40. Median personal income is $32K per year. The main ethnic groups are European, Māori, Asian. Manawatu-Whanganui population estimates moved +1.4% in the year ended June 2024, after averaging +1.0% a year from 2018 to 2023, which should be read as a broader regional movement backdrop rather than suburb-level migration precision. The resident employment base moved from 1,122 in 2018 to 1,167 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 Papaioea North is $560 (560 houses, 385 units). This represents approximately 90% of median weekly personal income.

Livability indicators for Papaioea North: NZDep decile 8 (high deprivation); 1 school with avg EQI 444.

In 2026, Papaioea North recorded 1 building approval (1 house, 0 units), up 0% year-on-year.

Market & money
Livability signalsHeuristics
Rent Affordability90% Stretched
School QualityEQI 444· Average
DeprivationDecile 8 High
Development+0%· Steady
Rental marketMBIE
Median rent · wk(1/01/2026)$560
House · wk$560
Unit · wk$385
Rent / income90.2%
Lodgements63
DevelopmentStats NZ
Consents (2026)1
Houses1
YoY change+0%
People & prosperity
DemographicsCensus 23
Population2,454
Median age40
Household size
HH income · yr
Personal income · yr$32,300
Deprivation (NZDep)NZDep23
Less deprived8/10
NZDep score1057

1 = least deprived · 10 = most deprived

EthnicityCensus 23
European1,770
Māori432
Asian402
Pacific Peoples126
MELAA48
Top industriesCensus 23
Health Care and Social Assistance198
Retail Trade144
Education and Training117
Public Administration and Safety108
Accommodation and Food87
Area & amenity
Local amenitiesOSM
Supermarkets1
Pharmacies1
GP / clinics1
Fuel stations0
Cafes & dining2
new world1
Shortlist workspace

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Current status
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Sources & freshness
Strong evidence

Papaioea North carries 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 · 1/01/2026 · 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 · 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.

Papaioea North FAQ

Common questions
  1. What is the typical weekly rent in Papaioea North?

    The median weekly rent in Papaioea North is $560/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 Papaioea North?

    Income-stretched rent market: Weekly rent screens at about 90% 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 Papaioea North?

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

  4. Where does QuickProperty get its data for Papaioea North?

    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 Papaioea North 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.