New Zealand Home Values Rise

The average sale price of a house in New Zealand was $393,373 (£176,638) in November, an increase from $389,198 (£174,763) in October. Over the calander year, there has been a 1.0 percent increase in property values, an improvement on the 0.2% annualised increasel last month. The recent fall in sterling against the New Zealand dollar has also increased the cost of buying a NZ home for prospective British migrants.

Commenting on house prices in New Zealand, Quotable Value’s spokesperson Glenda Whitehead said: “There are signs in recent weeks that there are more properties coming on to the market, especially in the main centres. This increase in supply will help to ease some of the upward pressure on prices presently caused by motivated buyers competing vigorously for the few available properties.”

House Prices in New Zealand
Three Months Ending November 2009

Location	Average House Price NZ$ (£)	Comments
Auckland Region	$519,051 (£233,072)	Property values in the Auckland region increased by 3.1% over the past year. residential property in the Auckland region continued to perform strongly over November. A continued shortage of listings and pent up demand in some areas has increased buyer competition, pushing up prices in the process. This activity appears prevalent in the central hubs within the region, with some contrasting activity out towards city fringes. An example of this is within Waitakere City, where demand is strong in Henderson and New Lynn, but weaker in Ranui and parts of Massey. Buyers continue to be discerning, focusing on properties with quality construction in traditionally sought-after streets and locations.
Hamilton	$343,562 (£154,271)	Hamilton’s property values decreased by 0.5% over the past year. Residential property values in Hamilton City slipped backwards a little in November after a slight recovery in October, further evidence that the market in the city has almost completely flattened off.
Wellington Region	$438,148 (£196,744)	Wellington’s property values increased by 2.9% over the past year. As far as values go, the Wellington region is holding a fairly steady trend of increasing values, along with most of the country’s main centres. Well presented homes in traditionally strong locations are still attracting good offers, and there seems to be a decent amount of activity in higher price brackets.
Christchurch	$357,801 (£160,665)	Property values in Christchurch increased by 2.8% over the past year. figures this month continue to show a recovery in Christchurch’s property market. Suburban Christchurch has held well with the Hill suburbs showing the greatest recovery of 2.3 per cent in comparison to the same period last year, closely followed by the central and northern suburbs at 1.8 per cent.
Dunedin	$271,460 (£119,586)	Dunedin’s residential property values increased 4.1% over the past year. “Market movement has been driven by a lack of listings over the previous three to four months, although recent indicators point to more properties being listed. This could start giving buyers more choice and bargaining power in the short term.
Tauranga	$401,620 (£180,341)	Property values in Tauranga decreased by 2.2% over the past year. Tauranga appears to be lagging behind the value increases being felt by the main centres. Most of the sales that are occurring seem to be at either sharp or predictable prices, although there is strong interest shown by buyers for property in the $300,000 to $400,000 bracket.

* Assumed exchange rate is £1 = NZ$2.227
** New Zealand’s average house prices are not directly comparable with the UK’s because, unlike the UK, the average home in New Zealand is a detached bungalow.