Hamilton home listings and sales escalate

15 November 2018

Hamilton home listings and sales escalate as local market bucks national trend

Over 410 homes were listed for sale in Hamilton on realestate.co.nz during October, representing a 13% increase on September 2018 listings and up 13% on October 2017.

Sales were also strong during October with 300 homes being sold in the city. This is and increase from 245 homes sold in Hamilton in September 2018 and also up on 235 sold during October 2017.

Lodge Real Estate managing director, Jeremy O’Rourke says, “The majority of those people listing homes for sale are looking to buy again within Hamilton. This sort of inter-city movement is a sign of confidence and vitality in the city.

“Hamilton has bounced back from a slow winter period. There’s a lot of positive momentum heading into summer. This is contrary to what is happening in many other New Zealand markets, particularly those in parts of the country south of Hamilton where listings and sales are holding relatively steady or dropping off.”

Mr O’Rourke says home listings and sales within the smaller towns surrounding Hamilton are also incredibly strong.

“Cambridge, for instance, had 66 house sales during October which is the largest month since 2014. Sales activity in Morrinsville, Ngaruawahia, Raglan and Te Awamutu is outpacing other similarly sized towns around the country.”

O’Rourke says there were many reasons why Hamilton is outperforming other New Zealand markets.

“Home prices are relatively stable, so buyers are attracted to the predictability. Plus, there is confidence in the market – buyers know they’ll get a steady and positive return on their home investment because the local economy is thriving and predicted to grow.

“Additionally, Hamilton’s market has seen virtually no material impact following the new Overseas Investment Office rules which came into force in October and restricted foreign investment into property.

“And, quite frankly, the sun’s shining and the weather is warm. Believe it or not, great spring weather often leads to strong sales activity.”

Mr O’Rourke says Hamilton’s investment and commercial markets are also buoyant.

“Hamilton is in high demand as a business centre. For instance, 85% of available commercial properties in the Te Rapa Industrial Estate is now sold. Finding quality industrial land in Hamilton has been challenging for quite some time and is getting tighter.

“On the residential investment side of the market, Hamilton has experienced a surge in interest from buyers looking to buy rental properties.

“Hamilton’s property market is very strong on all fronts.”

This is based on the latest Real Estate Institute of NZ (REINZ) market data for Hamilton, which was released yesterday. Visit www.reinz.co.nz for more information.

-ENDS-

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