NZ Property market steadies with influx of new listings   7 Aug 2012

AUCKLAND, 7 August, 2012 – The New Zealand property market steadied in July, as a healthy influx of new listings of homes for sale eased pressure on falling winter inventory providing a richer selection for buyers, says Realestate.co.nz

Data released today in the NZ Property Report – a monthly report of housing market activity compiled by Realestate.co.nz – revealed that 9,411 new listings arrived on the market in July, which while down slightly on a seasonally adjusted basis, were still up 5% on the same time last year.

Alistair Helm, CEO of Realestate.co.nz, says that following the previous month’s record four year low for inventory – prompted by ongoing high demand for property – the influx of new listings kept pace with the previous month’s new listings, preventing a further drop.

“Recent months have placed some stress on the market for buyers, with the shortage of new listings along with higher numbers of sales placing the market’s favour firmly in sellers’ hands,” says Helm.

“July was certainly not a bad month for buyers. June sales were down slightly from May, which has caused the inventory to lift back up to 31 weeks, but this is still well below the long term average of 40 weeks. Sellers still clearly have the upper hand, but buyers do have some richer choices now.”

Helm says the continued sellers’ market prompted a slight, but not unexpected lift in asking prices, reaching $429,181, led this time by record highs for asking prices in Canterbury.

“The clear signal from the July data was one of market stability, but whether that will persist remains to be seen. However, as winter winds down in the coming month, buyers and sellers will no doubt increase their activity in anticipation of spring, which may shift the balance again.”

Realestate.co.nz is the country’s most comprehensive property listing website profiling listings of licensed real estate agents with more than 110,000 real estate listings covering residential, commercial, business and farms for sale.

The latest issue of the NZ Property Report, covering July 2012, plus more analysis of the property market can be found on www.unconditional.co.nz, the news and information website for New Zealand real estate.

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