It’s always good to recognise reaching a significant milestone, especially in troubled times such as these. And, as you may have noticed from our cover, we have a milestone of our own to celebrate this month: this issue is the 200th issue of NZ Property Investor.

We feel that publishing 200 magazines is an achievement worth acknowledging in itself. But this milestone also represents a chance to reflect on property investment in New Zealand and how that has fared, and changed, over the years.

In order to do that, I took a trip down memory lane and read through our back catalogue. It was an enlightening experience as it showed just how much some things have changed in the world of property, while others remain unchanged.

The first issue of NZ Property Investor came out in October 2003. The years since have seen great highs and major lows, both internationally and domestically. For New Zealand, those lows include the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), the Christchurch earthquakes and now the Covid-19 crisis.

Throughout it all though, New Zealand’s property market has performed strongly, recovering pretty quickly after the GFC and through an unprecedented boom several years ago. Nonetheless, it hasn’t all been smooth sailing for investors, with a big increase in tax and housing policies and regulation in recent years, for example.

Our back issues also show that while some investors were hard hit by events like the GFC, many have come back to build stellar portfolios again. Others have managed to traverse the years more smoothly. Their stories, and the ready flow of others’ stories, provide lessons in determination and resilience, as well as demonstrating the ongoing attraction of property investing as a way to build financial security.

We wanted to encapsulate and reflect all of this in our 200th issue. So our lead feature takes a look at the main topics covered in our first issue – and assesses where they are at now, while our regional review uncovers the top 12 locations for price growth around New Zealand since 2003.

Additionally, we’ve gone back and talked to some of the investors we’ve profiled over the years. They tell us all about what they are up to now and how property has helped them achieve their goals. It’s worth noting that while they’ve had their ups and downs, all are still in the property game.

There’s inspiration and learning to be had from all these articles. And writing this, our 200th editorial, in these uncertain post-Covid-19 times, that seems important. We hope you enjoy reading these articles and find some motivation going forward.

We’d also like to say thanks to all our readers, writers and advertisers for your support over the years. Now, please raise your (metaphoric) glasses and join us in celebrating our 200th issue. And here’s to many more!