National housing stock for sale rises 10.7% as buyers gain choice
Auckland's average asking price fell to $993,562 in September, dropping below $1 million for the first time in six years, according to realestate.co.nz data. The figure is about $281,000 below the city's January 2022 peak of $1,274,829.
Buyers in the city now have much more to choose from. More than 3,500 new listings came onto the Auckland market during the month, up 7.7% on a year earlier, while total stock rose 13.8% to 13,958 homes.
Vanessa Williams (pictured), general manager of customer at realestate.co.nz, said the combination of high stock and lower asking prices had created "one of the most buyer-friendly markets the city has seen in years".
Supply keeps building
National stock rose 10.7% year-on-year to 34,001 properties. Gisborne led with a 62.7% increase, while Southland was the only region with fewer homes on the market than a year earlier.
New listings edged up 0.8% to 9,466, although they fell in 12 of the 19 regions. Williams said the national rise suggests the coming election isn't putting sellers off.
BNZ chief economist Mike Jones said sales growth has cooled while fresh listings keep arriving, so the pool of unsold homes continues to rise gradually. That leaves purchasers with more time and choice, and "there is little to no pressure on house prices to rise".
Regions split on pricing
Nationally, the average asking price held almost flat at $855,245, down 0.2% year-on-year.
Nelson and Bays slipped below $800,000 for the first time in five years, to $791,917, and Wairarapa recorded the steepest annual fall of any region, down 9.2% to $667,375. At the other end, four regions set September records, including Canterbury at $736,585 and Central Otago/Lakes at $1,586,916.
What it means for advisers
Buyers' extra leverage comes as borrowing costs rise. The Reserve Bank (RBNZ) lifted the official cash rate (OCR) to 2.75% on 2 September, noting that higher wholesale rates had already pushed up mortgage rates. For advisers, rising stock and softer Auckland asking prices may still give purchasing clients more room to negotiate.
Asking prices measure market sentiment rather than final sale prices. Sale-based data points the same way: Cotality's Home Value Index shows national values fell for a sixth straight month in September, with values in most of Auckland's largest sub-markets down around 3% or more over the year, and buyers "still holding most of the negotiating power", according to Cotality NZ chief property economist Kelvin Davidson.
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