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Suburb profile · Wellington · NZ

Island Bay West NZ

Island Bay West is in Wellington, New Zealand, with population 3,234.

The read

Livability-led

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.

$680/wk
1/04/2021 → 1/01/2026 · 20 periods
Tenancy Services · 1/01/2026
$850
$500
1/04/20211/01/2026
Why it fits

Transport coverage adds a practical access signal. Lower deprivation supports a livability-led read.

Median rent
$770/wk
Income-stretched rent market
D9 vs NZ
Population
3,234
3K local footprint
D9 vs NZ
Income
$62K/yr
Median personal income
D10 vs NZ
NZDep
Decile 2
Lower deprivation
D2 vs NZ
Schools
No matched schools

Area prices & affordability

Median sale price
$852K
-0.4% over 5yr
1.4%YoY
Lower quartile
$702K
Entry-level price
House Price Index
2,576
QV-based HPI
18.3%5yr
Income to buy
6.4x
Years of median income
Annual sales
2,421
Transactions, TA
Years of median household income to buy

Figures are for the Wellington 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 Island Bay West, not a Island Bay West-specific sale price.

Rent trend depth

Rent cycle positionRents recovering
Low · 2020Peak · 2021

16.0% below peak rent · 51.1% above its low

Rent growth (compound)3-yr +4.8%/yr · 5-yr -3.4%/yr

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

Personal income

$62K personal · yr+27.1% vs Wellington 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.

Livability

47/ 100 livability index

Top 53% most liveable of 1,714New Zealand suburbs.

Everyday access69
Public transport73
Schools & hospitals0

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
92.3%YoY D1 vs NZ

Employment

Employed residents
1,989
Was 2,034 in 2018
2.2%vs 2018 D10 vs NZ

Full data detail

Island Bay West Wellington — Property Data and Demographics

Island Bay West is a small suburb in Wellington with a population of 3,234 and a median age of 38. Median personal income is $62K per year. The main ethnic groups are European, Asian, Māori. Wellington population estimates moved +0.8% in the year ended June 2024, after averaging +0.8% 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 2,034 in 2018 to 1,989 in 2023 (-2.2%), 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 Island Bay West is $770 (770 houses, 430 units). This represents approximately 65% of median weekly personal income.

Livability indicators for Island Bay West: NZDep decile 2 (low deprivation (affluent)); 11 transport stops (11 bus).

In 2026, Island Bay West recorded 1 building approval (1 house, 0 units), down 92.3% year-on-year.

Market & money
Livability signalsHeuristics
Rent Affordability65% Stretched
DeprivationDecile 2 Low
Transport Access11 stops· Some Access
Development-92% Slowing
Rental marketMBIE
Median rent · wk(1/01/2026)$770
House · wk$770
Unit · wk$430
Rent / income64.7%
Lodgements75
DevelopmentStats NZ
Consents (2026)1
Houses1
YoY change-92.3%
People & prosperity
DemographicsCensus 23
Population3,234
Median age38
Household size
HH income · yr
Personal income · yr$61,900
Deprivation (NZDep)NZDep23
Less deprived2/10
NZDep score929

1 = least deprived · 10 = most deprived

EthnicityCensus 23
European2,697
Asian381
Māori330
Pacific Peoples156
MELAA102
Top industriesCensus 23
Public Administration and Safety393
Professional, Scientific and Technical291
Health Care and Social Assistance231
Education and Training174
Construction135
Area & amenity
Local amenitiesOSM
Supermarkets1
Pharmacies0
GP / clinics0
Fuel stations0
Cafes & dining4
new world1
TransportGTFS
Bus stops11
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Current status
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Sources & freshness
Strong evidence

Island Bay West 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 · No linked local school matches
stable source · automated · every update · nightly
Missing
Hospitals
Pinned Health NZ public hospital snapshot · No linked local hospital coverage
medium stability · mixed acquisition · snapshot · mixed
Missing
Transport
NZ GTFS bundle · 11 matched stops
medium stability · mixed acquisition · snapshot · mixed
Available
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.

Island Bay West FAQ

Common questions
  1. What is the typical weekly rent in Island Bay West?

    The median weekly rent in Island Bay West is $770/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 Island Bay West?

    Income-stretched rent market: Weekly rent screens at about 65% 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 Island Bay West?

    QuickProperty's livability signals for Island Bay West show: Stretched, Low, Some Access. These are based on rent affordability, school EQI, NZDep deprivation index, and transport access.

  4. Where does QuickProperty get its data for Island Bay West?

    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 Island Bay West 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.