New loan-to-value rules will take some heat out of the housing market but won't bring in dramatic changes.

That's the warning from a Kiwibank economist after the Reserve Bank today announced lending restrictions.

It'll bump up deposits to 30 per cent for property investors and 20 per cent for first home buyers from March 1.

Economist Jarrod Kerr told Heather du Plessis-Allan it'll shave off a bit of this year's price growth.

"We think the house price appreciation for 2021 could be more like 7-8 percent, rather than the 15-16 percent we saw last year."

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