homes.co.nz – Are homeowners staying put?

Last month, the team at homes.co.nz tried to put recent property price decreases into perspective by comparing any price drops to the average capital gains generated across the country.

Although most kiwi homeowners have owned their home for an extended period of time and are able to withstand price fluctuations, we do acknowledge that there are those who have purchased recently who may be worried.

This month we’ve looked at where there may be a higher number of new homeowners and what the localised price trends are.

The largest price drops this year have been observed in the Wellington area with the Median HomesEstimate down ~10% from where it was at the beginning of the year. This has coincided with relatively less turnover with only 1.6% of homes selling this year. This trend is similar in Auckland and Dunedin where price decreases coincide with relatively fewer sales.

This contrasts with Tauranga and some more regional centres; such as New Plymouth, Invercargill and Whangarei, where house prices continue to increase and turnover is higher. Christchurch demonstrates a different dynamic again and remains the most tightly held market, despite prices continuing to increase (albeit much slower than they have).