MEDIA RELEASE 29 January 2013
Immediate
Harcourts New Zealand
Another Record Month as NZ’s Largest Real Estate Company Celebrates 125 Years
Harcourts’ return to business in 2013 will kick off a year of celebration, hard work and a recovering and interesting
market for New Zealanders.
After a hugely successful 2012, Harcourts New Zealand CEO Hayden Duncan will be launching some big projects amongst the
celebration of the firm’s 125 years in business.
November proved strong with Harcourts, reporting written sales in excess of $1 billion dollars and based on their
figures the level of activity is no longer constrained to the Auckland market. Given the slowed activity of Christmas
and New Year, December produced an increase in Harcourts average sale price by 7.6%.
Mr Duncan says for Harcourts New Zealand, 2013 is about supporting and educating those who want to buy and sell property
and this creates opportunities to those wanting a career in real estate.
"The 2013 outlook for the country is one of an environment with continued low interest rates and housing stocks
remaining tight. With limited building planned, particularly in Auckland, it will have the impact of fuelling on-going
price increases so if you are pondering on what the best time to buy is, it’s now!”
The year ahead will see the launch of The New Zealand Real Estate Scholarship Programme in this, its second year. This
programme is offered nationally allowing professionals to enter into a career in real estate with New Zealand’s largest
and best equipped real estate organisation. With over 210 applications in 3 and a half weeks last year the project team
are setting up for a very busy April with applications opening 1 March.
2013 marks the oldest real estate company’s 125th birthday. Beginning in 1888 in Wellington by a man of the same name,
J. B Harcourt the company has gone from humble beginnings to being New Zealand’s largest real estate company. Still
privately New Zealander owned after 125 years will be amongst the reasons to celebrate for Harcourts and Mr Duncan
believes New Zealanders will also celebrate the firm as an iconic New Zealand business success story who now exports
services and systems into ten countries around the globe.
ENDS