Stats NZ says figure is the highest in four years
The number of home transfers increased by 14% percent in the September 2020 quarter compared with the same period in 2019, according to figures from Statistics New Zealand.
Stats NZ revealed that 41,484 homes were transferred during the September 2020 quarter – the highest quarterly number in four years and rebounding from the series low of 26,265 in the June 2020 quarter.
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Within the September 2020 quarter, the number of home transfers in July and August was about 7% higher than those for the same months in 2019. But in the month of September, home transfers picked up to a 30% year-on-year rise.
“Despite the sharp drop in the June quarter, on an annual basis property transfers are almost back to levels seen a year ago,” said Bryan Downes, acting property statistics manager at Stats NZ. “Home transfers in Auckland in the September month were up 39% on September 2019, despite COVID-19 level 2.5 restrictions being in place for much of the month.”
Additionally, Stats NZ reported a 0.6% rise in home transfers to people without New Zealand citizenship or resident visas in the September 2020 quarter – up from 0.5% in the September 2019 quarter. This proportion has been between 0.4% and 0.6% per quarter since early 2019.
