Auckland still underpins national improvement in property values

Feb. 14 (BusinessDesk) – Auckland’s property market continues to underpin a nationwide improvement in values, which are 2.7 percent ahead of the same time a year ago, according to government valuer Quotable Value.

National property values rose 1.1 percent in the three months ended Jan 31, and are now 3.3 percent below the previous market peak in late 2007, QV said. That national gain has come from rising values in Auckland, which are up 5.1 percent on the same time in 2011, and are above the 2007 peak by 1.9 percent. Provincial centres struggled in the three month period, with urban and rural areas registering gains.

“The increase in values in many areas, particularly central Auckland, can in part be attributed to a lack of supply, with a shortage of desirable and well-presented properties for sale,” research director Jonno Ingerson said in a statement. “When quality properties come up for sale in these areas, they are in high demand, which is tending to push the price up.”

The number of house sales climbed by a fifth in December from a year earlier, according to Real Estate Institute figures last month, though the number of homes on the market remains low by historical standards. The market has spent much of the last year in decline as households avoid taking on new debt to buy property, instead using low interest rates to repay outstanding bank loans.

QV’s Ingerson said market activity has picked up since the start of the year, though “potential buyers remain cautious and calculated and are often unwilling to commit quickly.”

Auckland’s average sale price in the three months ended Jan. 31 rose to $610,760 from $597,032 in December.

Wellington city property values were 0.3 percent higher through the 12 months ended Jan. 31, and have recovered most of their losses since the middle of 2011. The average three-month sale price rose to $500,063 from $483,160 a month earlier.

Christchurch property values were 3.7 percent above the same month a year ago, with the average sale price at $377,040, up from $371,885, and Dunedin property values were 3.4 percent higher 12 months ago, with the average sale price at $272,657 in January, up from $265,210.

(BusinessDesk)

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