It's now cheaper to rent a home in New Zealand than to buy - at least in the short-term.

BNZ has revealed servicing a mortgage takes about 50 percent of the average household income.

Chief economist Mike Jones says that's more than double the cost of renting, at about 24 percent.

But he says that doesn't mean renting is the most cost-effective over the long-haul - because no one knows what house prices will do.

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