Residential asking prices reach new national high

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Residential asking prices reach new national high

AUCKLAND, 2 April 2014 –Average asking prices of newly listed residential properties across New Zealand rose to a new record high in March driven by renewed seller confidence in the major centres.

The record high average asking price of $484,263 – revealed today in the NZ Property Report, a monthy report of housing market activity compiled by Realestate.co.nz – was driven up by new record asking prices in Auckland ($683,169), Wellington ($469,487), and Waikato ($393,612).

The number of available homes for sale recovered slightly on the back of a healthy increase of new listings in Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch. The national inventory of unsold homes on the market lifted by 8 per cent from the previous month to 28 weeks of stock, however still remains well below the long-term average of 37 weeks.

Realestate.co.nz Marketing Manager, Paul McKenzie, said seller confidence in the major centres is rising, buoyed by strong demand, suggesting that asking prices will continue to rise. Particularly notable is the asking price increase of over $5,000 in Auckland, where asking prices rose to a new record high of $683,169.

Record asking prices in March were seen in three regions, Auckland, Wellington and Waikato, Mr McKenzie said. Average Auckland asking prices rose by 12 per cent year-on-year, Wellington prices rose 7 per cent and Waikato prices 10 per cent.

In the past month, new property listings increased by 3 per cent, up from 12,167, countering the downward trend over the past year. New property listings of 12,488 in March are 1.9 percent lower than a year ago although significant increases were seen in Auckland, Wellington, Canterbury, Wairarapa and Gisborne. Auckland new listings increased by 5.2 per cent to 4,389, Wellington 10.8 percent to 1,136 and Canterbury 3.7 per cent to 1,453.

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NZ_Property_Report__2_Apr_2014_Realestate.co.nz.pdf

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