Slower property market for Auckland in January

_8 February 2008

Media Release

Slower property market for Auckland in January

Sales figures from Auckland’s leading real estate company, Barfoot & Thompson, show a slowing in the Auckland residential property market in January.

Director Peter Thompson says there was a cooling in the market for the first month of the year, over and above the normal seasonal slow down, but he believes it will be another month or two before a clear picture emerges.

The average sale price declined by 7.5%, from $559,803 in December 2007 to $517,613 in January 2008. The volume of sales was also light with Barfoot & Thompson negotiating 604 sales in January, compared to 1,003 for the same month last year.

Barfoot & Thompson ended the month with 6,173 listings on its books. Mr Thompson says that’s a higher than normal figure demonstrating that there are plenty of willing vendors in the market but that they will need to be realistic about price expectations.

“It’s too early to make predictions about the state of the property market for the remainder of 2008, although we should have a clearer idea by the end of February where the market is likely to sit. Indications to date are that February is also slow, but we have to take into account the fact that school holidays have lasted a week longer than usual.”

January is always a very busy month for property management and this year has proved no exception for Barfoot & Thompson. Of particular note is the sharp increase in average weekly rent from a 2007 average of $370 to $396 in January. This is the highest average weekly rent on record – the next highest month was October 2007 when the average was $388.

ENDS

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