National Overview of the property market - May 2016

In New Zealand, if you wish to purchase a residential house you can now expect to pay an average price of $591,812. This is a record high and a 10% increase on the same time last year.

The number of residential houses available to buy has dipped down by 28.9% across New Zealand. While Auckland’s stock levels have been declining for some time, this is now very visible throughout the rest of the country.

Chris Kennedy, CEO of Harcourts New Zealand says the government’s immigration target of 40,000 to 50,000 people a year nationwide, demand for housing will continue to increase. With that said, with new builds not even close to keeping up with demand, there will be an inevitable squeeze on the number of properties available to buy and prices will rise.

In Auckland and Northland the average house price rose to $916,634, and stock down by 8%. Auckland has always led the rest of the country in property trends.

In the provincial South Island prices are sitting at an all-time high of $398,252, with stock levels down by 27.4%. The South Island provincial region continues to represent the best value for money in New Zealand.