The housing market finally showed signs of activity last month, the Real Estate Institute said.
The latest data released shows that nationwide sales increased by 6.4% year-on-year for the month, totalling 7,505.
Gisborne experienced a 70% increase in sales, reaching 63, while the West Coast saw a rise of nearly 52%, totalling 44. Taranaki’s sales grew by 26%, amounting to 184.
The national median for Days to Sell dropped by one day, now standing at 41 days.
Southland recorded the biggest drop in median Days to Sell, decreasing by 13 days from 44 to 31. In contrast, the West Coast experienced the largest year-on-year rise, with median Days to Sell increasing by 23 days from 24 to 47.
“I think at the moment what we are seeing is good weather suddenly appearing made it feel like it was spring,” chief executive Lizzy Ryley said.
“Seasonally we were expecting to see something in September, which we’ve seen in October. Talking around the country to everybody, it feels like it just switched overnight … if the market doesn’t move in October and November, when will it move? And it’s moving.”
New Zealand’s median house price fell by 1.1% year-on-year to $786,000. When excluding Auckland, the median price rose by 0.6% year-on-year, reaching $710,000. Meanwhile, the house price index, which adjusts for changes in the mix of properties sold, increased by 0.3% year-on-year.
Auckland’s median price surpassed $1 million for the first time since March, while the West Coast and Queenstown Lakes also reached record highs.
“It really shows that demand isn’t just holding up but actually lifting, especially in premium and regional areas,” Ryley said.
New listings across the country increased by 5.5% year-on-year, reaching 12,209. Outside Auckland, new listings also rose by 4.2% year-on-year to 7,783. Nationally, inventory levels climbed 3.9% year-on-year, surpassing 33,000 to total 33,588.
According to Ryley, “First-home buyers continue to be a dominant group across the country, taking advantage of lower interest rates and a stabilised market in terms of price, closely followed by owner-occupiers.”
“Salespeople are telling us that the warmer weather, lower interest rates, and easing lending criteria have brought more people back into the market and boosted activity in many regions, which we can see from the data.”