Spring brings new listings to New Zealand property market
New Zealand’s housing market has some spring in its step.
New listings of houses for sale rose 9% in August from July. They were up 3% on August last year, according to data compiled by www.realestate.co.nz, which accounts for about 95% of all listings by real estate agents in New Zealand.
The 10,120 new listings in August brought the total amount of inventory for sale to an average 36.7 weeks worth of sales, down from the long-term average of 41 weeks. It was 42 weeks in June.
“The property market is now showing all the signs of gearing up for a much stronger spring season than has been seen for a number of years,” says www.realestate.co.nz chief executive Alistair Helm.
Nationwide 12 out of 19 regions now have inventory levels below the long-term average. At the end of August there were 44,689 houses, apartments and lifestyle properties on the market, down from 45,674 in July and down from 50,138 a year ago.
Asking prices are starting to edge higher. The average asking price in August of $415,078 was up 3% on July and up 1% from three months ago. It was $527,979 in Auckland where there’s 24 weeks sales inventory and $422,100 in Wellington with 19 weeks inventory.
