Two Months, No Offers: Is Wellington's Real Estate Market Improving?

Tuesday, 3 June 2025, 3:36 pm
Article: RNZ

Susan Edmunds, Money Correspondent

Charlotte Weston has had her Wellington home on the market for two months but is yet to receive an offer.

"There's been steady interest at open homes and second viewings requested, but no offers."

She said a couple of houses had sold nearby for less than the asking price so she had lowered her expectations.

It is now on the market for $550,000.

"Mine is currently listed for what I paid for it last year, despite all the improvements that I made to it like adding a heat pump, insulation and more storage. I can't drop it any further. I have accepted I'll lose money on it but it's surprising to me that it's taking so long to get any significant interest."

She said the real estate salesperson selling her property had told her it was a slow market. Weston is moving to Melbourne for family reasons.

"It's definitely tougher than I expected. The news I've seen is that although there's a slow increase on house prices, there's still an increase, and I didn't know it would sit on the market for this long without an offer. It's an ordinary ex-state house but there's nothing wrong with it."

New data from Realestate.co.nz shows that, although Wellington's property market has been doing it tough lately, sellers might be starting to feel more confident.

Wellington's prices are still down 25.1 percent from their peak, the biggest drop in the country, according to Real Estate Institute data.

But Wellington's asking price is now almost $95,000 more on average compared to May 2024, a lift of 12.9 percent. Across the country, the national average asking price is only up 0.8 percent over that same period.

Realestate.co.nz chief executive Sarah Wood said Wellington was worth watching closely. "After months of subdued figures, this lift could be early evidence of buyer confidence returning to the capital. A jump like this gives vendors reason to feel optimistic."

New listings were down in Wellington by 32.1 percent compared to May 2024, possibly driving the average asking price increase.

"We still need something significant to really move the dial in the property market. Last week's OCR drop wasn't that, but if interest rates drop and we see more investors in the market, we're likely to see a greater appetite for buying," she said.

Cotality chief property economist Kelvin Davidson said Wellington's market was starting to show signs of life.

"But it's also important to note it's coming from a low base and you always need to be a little careful with asking prices too...it may not necessarily be the case here, but the mix of properties being listed can skew prices from time to time.

"Long story short, yes Wellington does seem to be picking up - as are other parts of the country too, but it's not likely to be a boom any time soon."

Weston said she would need to see more evidence before being confident things were turning around.

"I don't know that I could judge any signs of improvement - the only way I'll really know is when I get offers. Numbers at open homes have been up and down week by week so I can't really judge by that."

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