This page uses two official sources: Stats NZ’s household net worth statistics for the year ended June 2024, which come from the Household Economic Survey, and Inland Revenue’s student loan statistics at 30 June 2026. Stats NZ collects household debt every three years, so the June 2024 survey is the latest.
In the year ended June 2024, about 1.53 million New Zealand households had some debt, with a median of $43,000 among them. About 600,000 households had a loan on the home they live in, with a median balance of $312,000. Averaged across all households, including those with no debt, total debt was $165,000. Inland Revenue's median student loan balance was $18,301 at 30 June 2026.
Household Debt in New Zealand (Year Ended June 2024)
Medians and means below are for the households that hold each type of debt (Stats NZ, household net worth statistics, year ended June 2024).
| Type of debt | Households holding it | Median balance | Mean balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Any debt (total household liabilities) | about 1,530,000 | $43,000 | $216,000 |
| Loans on the home the household lives in (owner-occupied residence loans) | about 600,000 | $312,000 | $360,000 |
| Education loans | about 403,000 | $20,000 | $34,000 |
Loans on the home households live in made up about 65% of all household debt ($215.9 billion of $329.9 billion).
Who Has a Mortgage or Student Loan, by Age
Number of people aged 15 and over holding each type of debt, by age group (Stats NZ, year ended June 2024). Stats NZ does not publish a median balance by age for people who hold the debt.
| Age group | People with a loan on the home they live in | People with an education loan |
|---|---|---|
| 15–24 | about 10,000* | about 160,000 |
| 25–34 | about 174,000 | about 198,000 |
| 35–44 | about 287,000 | about 89,000 |
| 45–54 | about 250,000 | about 41,000 |
| 55–64 | about 169,000 | about 14,000* |
| 65–74 | about 55,000 | about 6,000* |
| 75 and over | about 14,000* | about 3,000* |
| All ages | about 959,000 | about 511,000 |
*Stats NZ gives these estimates a relative sampling error above 30%, so treat them as rough.
Average Debt by Household Type
Mean total debt by household type, averaged across all households of that type including those with no debt (Stats NZ, year ended June 2024).
| Household type | Mean total debt |
|---|---|
| One-person household | $55,000 |
| Couple only | $136,000 |
| Couple with two or more dependent children | $301,000 |
| One parent with dependent child(ren) only | $114,000* |
| Owners who make mortgage payments | $424,000 |
| Households not owning their dwelling | $38,000 |
| All households | $165,000 |
*Relative sampling error above 40%.
These means include households with no debt. The median across all households was $11,000.
Student Loan Debt
NZ student loans are interest-free while you are living in New Zealand. Repayments are 12% of income above $24,128 a year in 2026–27.
| Inland Revenue student loan statistics | June 2025 | June 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Median student loan balance | $17,516 | $18,301 |
| Total student loan balance | $16.2 billion | $16.9 billion |
| Number of borrowers | 622,892 | 626,336 |
The Ministry of Education’s Student Loan Scheme Annual Report for 2024/25 gives an average balance of $26,075 and a median of $17,557.
Repayment example: on a $60,000 salary, the compulsory repayment is 12% × ($35,872 above the threshold) = $4,305 a year.
See pay off student loan early NZ for strategies to clear it faster.
Debt-to-Income Limits on Mortgages
Since 1 July 2024, each bank can make only 20% of its new owner-occupier lending to borrowers whose total debt is more than 6 times their gross income, and 20% of new investor lending above 7 times, so most borrowers are held to those multiples but a bank can go higher for some. See DTI restrictions.
How to Reduce Debt Faster
For several debts at once: the debt avalanche method pays the highest-interest debt first and the snowball method the smallest balance first; see debt snowball vs avalanche NZ.
For mortgages: Extra repayments shorten a loan and cut the interest paid. As an illustration, on a $500,000 loan over 30 years with weekly repayments and an interest rate held at 6.5% for the whole term, paying an extra $100 a week saves about $206,000 in interest and clears the loan about 8 years early. Real savings depend on your rate, which changes over the term, and on your lender’s rules for extra repayments.
See how to pay off debt NZ for a full framework.