AUCKLAND’S residential property market has just had the slowest October in a decade and figures for Manukau City reflect the trend.
Numbers of houses sold in Manukau significantly decreased 42 per cent to 281 in October compared with 483 for the same month last year, according to Real Estate Institute of New Zealand figures.
While the median price was down 7 per cent to $416,000 from $447,000 last year, October 2008 prices picked up 5 per cent from $397,000 in September.
Nationally sales values have remained fairly steady, says Peter McDonald, the institute’s vice-president. But turnover volume is down 20 per cent at 4469 sales recorded in October, compared with 6845 sales in October last year.
Last month’s volumes are about the same as the 4887 properties sold in October 2000.
The median house price in the Auckland region increased 3 per cent to $433,000 in October from $420,000 in September, but still fell 3 per cent from $445,000 in October last year. The number of houses sold dropped to 1371 in October from 2240 for the same month in 2007 and from 1425 sold in September.
Quotable Value (QV), the organisation that sets Government valuations on property, delivers the same message. Its average sale prices are calculated over the three months ending October 2008 compared to the same period last year.
Manukau East’s average residential sale price at $514,295 last month is down 8.7 per cent on the same time the year before, QV says.
Activity around Auckland remains patchy with the mid to upper end of the market attracting more attention than the lower end, says Glenda Whitehead, registered valuer and manager of QV in Auckland.
“The activity in the investor sector of the market is fuelled by financially burdened players trying to exit. On the other hand, established investors are making cheeky offers in an attempt to secure a good rental return.”
Written sales in October for Harcourts northern region were down 40 per cent at 260 compared with 432 the same time last year. Average prices dropped 11 per cent to $455,000 from $512,000.
However, the company’s chief executive Bryan Thomson says interest rates are trending down, summer is on the way, an abundance of buyers with pre-approved finance are about and properties, many with motivated vendors, are available.
Barfoot and Thompson managing director Peter Thompson says the impact of fallout from the international credit crisis and normal pre-election hesitancy has had an impact on volume rather than price.
Properties that did sell in October achieved good prices.
“It’s particularly noticeable at the upper end of the market where there were 27 sales between $1 million and $2m and another three sales between $2m and $4m,” says Mr Thompson.
In contrast, Barfoot and Thompson’s rental management business had the busiest October since 2002. The average rental charge last month was $385.
