I note that Golden Homes are offering to build a new house for less than $800/m2. Given the glut of sections available, I should be able to buy a section and build a nice 200m2 house for not much more than $300K here in Rotorua. Or am I missing something? I know spec houses of this size have recently been selling here for $500K-$600K and more. Are house prices going to fall as quickly as oil prices seem to be falling - perhaps they were both artificial bubbles. Some commentators have been warning for a long time of the potential for a huge fall in property prices - eg http://sra.co.nz/pdf/housinghell.pdf. If this happens, the consequences for highly mortgaged owners and for the NZ banking system which carries this $100b+ debt could be pretty awful.