This amidst ongoing economic headwinds and the impact of Cyclone Gabrielle
Annual median prices and sales counts across New Zealand posted a lesser rate of decline, with stock levels returning to normal levels in February, new REINZ data has revealed.
REINZ CEO Jen Baird (pictured above) said some data in the housing market returned to normal despite the ongoing economic headwinds and the impact of Cyclone Gabrielle.
“February traditionally shows a reasonable month of activity, but the impact of extreme and devastating weather over the start of 2023 is certainly showing in the data with sales and listings significantly down in affected areas,” Baird said. “We may continue to see this for some time in parts of Northland, Auckland, Tairāwhiti Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay, Coromandel, and Bay of Plenty.”
New listings across New Zealand dropped by 29.5% to 8,143 in February, from 11,545 listings in the same period the prior year. In Auckland, listings were down 36.9% from 4,365 to 2,755 year on year, while listings in Tairāwhiti fell 54.4% year-on-year from 68 to 31 new listings.
“Even though new listings are down as communities respond to the weather and the anticipation of economic adjustments ahead, inventory levels are now showing a return to standard levels after a few years at historically low levels,” Baird said. “When we looked at the trend over a 10-year period, we can definitely see the return to normal stock levels.”
At the end of February, the total number of properties for sale nationally was 29,083 – an increase of 25% from 5,813 properties year-on-year, and up 4.9% from 27,732 month-on-month. For New Zealand excluding Auckland, inventory increased by 40.8% month-on-month from 13,253 to 18,656, while month-on-month, it was up 4.9% from 17,781 properties, meaning there are currently plenty of choices for buyers in the market.
When it comes to residential property sales, nationally the number eased annually by 31.1% from 5,750 in February 2022 to 3,964 in February, while month-on-month there was an increase of 40.4%.
Across New Zealand, median prices dropped by 13.9% year-on-year to $762,000 but increased across most of the regions when compared to January. Auckland median prices lifted by 7%, tipping back over the $1 million price point.
Median days to sell were at 60 in February. That’s up six days when compared to the previous month and up 18 days from the same month in 2022.
“Our seasonally adjusted data shows that when compared to what is typically observed moving from the month of January to the month of February, all regions except Taranaki and Tasman had smaller gains in sales count month-on-month than what would be expected,” Baird said. “In other words, even though the sales count change from January to February looks significant, we would typically expect greater increases based on what has been observed historically. Rising interest rates, increased cost of living, and inability to secure finance are still having an impact on buyers, but REINZ members are telling of returned activity at open homes in areas that weren’t as impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle.”
The REINZ House Price Index (HPI) for New Zealand showed that residential property nationwide fell by 14.2% annually. For New Zealand excluding Auckland, that’s a 12.3% drop. Month-on-month, there was a slight increase of 0.1% and 0.3%, respectively.
For more information and data on national and regional activity visit the REINZ’s website.
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