10 regions hit record high sales prices

According to the latest data from realestate.co.nz listings are still down 16.1% compared to October last year. The website had its second biggest month of the year with 1.35 million visitors eyeing up properties.

For many years, supply has not met demand, but there are signs of a shift with a small increase in lower North Island listings last month compared with September.

“This could mean one of two things, that either demand is cooling in these regions, or more properties are being listed. Our site data suggests the latter,” says Vanessa Williams from realestate.co.nz.

In the past, Auckland had led the way a rise in listings, but it now seems Wellington and the surrounding regions are leading the charge with stock availability, she says.

Realestate.co.nz has about 97% of all properties listed through licensed real estate agents in New Zealand.

The average asking price for a house in October was just below $1 million at $993,135. Ten regions hit a 14-year record-high average asking price.

Central Otago Lakes district had the biggest increase in asking price, up 41.9% from October last year to reach $1,423,038.

The region is the most expensive in the country. The listing prices there went up on average by $200,000 in September, Williams says this figure may have been elevated by a “handful of lakeside properties hitting the market”.

No regions went backwards year-on-year, but Canterbury, Southland, Otago, West Coast and Taranaki’s asking prices all dropped more than 1% in September on the month before.

Auckland had record asking prices, up 21.3% to $1,230,163, not much under Otago Lakes District, followed by Wellington rising 24% to $961,799.

Central North Island topped the charts with a rise of 37.2% to $794,975 on last October. Wairarapa was up 34% to $810,790, Hawke’s Bay up 28% to $843,306.

Waikato and Manawatu rose 27.1% and 26.5% with asking prices of $865,592 and $659,622 respectively. The asking price in Bay of Plenty was near to Wellington’s at $945,971, up 21.4%.

The West Coast is still the most affordable region to buy a house.

The average asking price there was $379,520, but rising 20% when compared to October last year.