Houses now spending less than a month on the market
Homes in New Zealand are “selling like hotcakes” amid the housing crisis, with the average Kiwi home taking only 27 days to sell, according to Trade Me’s latest data.
Trade Me Property sales director Gavin Lloyd said the site had analysed the time a property spends on site to determine how fast they are selling. It showed that each region in New Zealand except Gisborne saw houses sell faster in March 2021 than the same time last year.
Buyers in the Wellington region were the quickest to buy properties, with the average time on site at only 21 days in March. Meanwhile, properties for sale in Wellington City took only 20 days to sell, a 13% drop in a year.
Christchurch homes also joined the race for the fastest to sell, with the average time on site for a home in the Garden City sitting at only 24 days in March compared to 35 days last year.
Meanwhile, homes in the Auckland region were also selling faster than last year, with an average time on site of only 28 days in March compared to 34 days last March. In Auckland City, houses were on the market for an average of 26 days in March – with the fastest method of sale being auction at only 22 days, followed by deadline sale at 26 days and tender at 27 days.
“Prior to the COVID-19 lockdowns, in February last year, the average time on site for a property was 45 days. In the past month, that’s dropped 40%, and houses are now spending less than a month on the market,” Lloyd said.
“It’s pretty astounding to see properties being snapped up so quick, and this shows how much the New Zealand property landscape has changed in the last year.”
Lloyd added that the increase in property demand was behind the trend.
“In March, nationwide demand for properties for sale was up 26% on the month prior. We’re hearing anecdotally that buyers are pulling out all the stops to secure a property, whether it’s handwriting a personalised letter or trying to bring tenders and auction dates forward,” he continued.
“With winter approaching, we would typically expect to see things cool off as property buyers and sellers retreat for the colder months. However, looking at our data, it doesn’t appear that this will be a normal winter for the property market.”
