NZ house prices hold at 10-year high, sales slip

NZ house prices hold at 10-year high, number of sales slips, says REINZ

Dec. 14 (BusinessWire) – New Zealand house prices held at a 10-year high last month, while total sales edged lower, suggesting the property market is consolidating at a higher level.

The national median house price was $355,000 in November, unchanged from October, according to the Real Estate Institute. The volume of sales edged down 0.6% to 6,056 having jumped from just 4,279 sold in November 2008.

“The residential property sales market has remained steady and I believe it will firm even further as the economy recovers,” said REINZ president Peter McDonald.

The median price is now 5.2% higher than in November 2008 and investors say the resurgent property market probably helped convince Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard to last week bring forward the timing of increases in the official cash rate. In the latest monetary policy statement he said hikes to the official cash rate could begin in mid-2010.

The national median days to sell rose to 33 in November from 31 in the previous month, REINZ said. Days to sell were 44 in November 2008. Media values have climbed in nine out of 12 districts compared to November 2008.

In the regions, there were 146 houses sold in Northland, up from 113 in October, and the median house price increased to $341,000 from $310,000. The median house price in Auckland rose to $470,000 from $455,000, with sales rising to 2,192 from 2,072 a month earlier.

The median price in Waikato/Bay of Plenty/Gisborne fell to $320,000 from $327,500 with sales of 828 houses, up from 789. In Hawkes Bay, sales were unchanged at 225 and the median price gained to $275,000 from $272,000.
Manawatu/Wanganui’s median price rose to $230,000 in November from $225,250, as sales fell to 281 from 297 from 286. Taranaki’s median price rose to $277,000 from $275,000 with sales declining to 149 from 159.

In Wellington, the median price fell to $391,500 from $415,000, with 665 sales, down from 757. Nelson/Marlborough sales fell to 199 from 206 a month earlier, with the median price rising to $326,000 from $320,000.
In Canterbury/Westland, the median price held unchanged at $310,000, with the volume of sales falling to 832 from 980.

Central Otago Lakes had 99 sales, up from 86, with the median price falling to $441,000 from $483,000. In Otago, there were 275 houses sold, up from 247 in October, while the median price increased to $240,000 from $235,000.
Southland sales rose to 165 from 160. The median price rose to $182,000 from $180,750.

(BusinessWire)

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