Data released by the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) shows growing strength in the lifestyle property sector
There were 116 more lifestyle property sales (+6.4%) for the three months ended December 2019 than for the three months ended November 2019. Overall, there were 1,922 lifestyle property sales in the three months ended December 2019, compared to 1,775 lifestyle property sales for the three months ended December 2018 (+8.3%), and 1,806 lifestyle property sales for the three months ended November 2019.
7,059 lifestyle properties were sold in the year to December 2019, 29 (-0.4%) fewer than were sold in the year to December 2018. The value of lifestyle properties sold was $5.73 billion for the year to December 2019.
The median price for all lifestyle properties sold in the three months to December 2019 was $725,000 and was $35,000 higher compared to the three months ended December 2018 (+5.1%).
Brian Peacocke, Rural Spokesman, at REINZ says: “Sales volumes recorded in the lifestyle sector for the 3 month period ending December 2019 are encouraging and reflect solid strength in the marketplace, and whilst volumes eased in the month of December compared to November, that easing can be reasonably attributed to the shorter selling period leading into Christmas.
“The median price of $725,000 for the country which is the highest for some time, underpins the strength of the market,” he concludes.
Points of Interest around New Zealand include:
- Upper North – an easing of volumes from the previous month for Northland with a balanced spread of activity across the region and an increase in the median price; a similar easing in volumes for the Auckland region with continuing strength in both the Rodney and Franklin districts where prices are holding steady
- Mid North Island – a slight increase in numbers and median price for the Waikato where the central areas again dominated; an easing in volumes from the previous month for Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay and Taranaki with Bay of Plenty and the Waikato holding par with prices as against a slight easing in the other regions
- Lower North Island – a sharp drop in sales numbers from November in the Manawatu/Wanganui area although prices held well compared to a strong lift in both volumes and price in the Wellington region with Southern Wairarapa and the Kapiti Coast competing strongly for overall honours
- Upper South Island – December numbers dropped away from the previous month in the Nelson/Marlborough and West Coast regions with an easing in the median price for the former and a strengthening for the latter; Canterbury remained solid in both volume and price with the Waimakariri and Selwyn districts continuing to dominate the numbers game; quieter in the Ashburton, Timaru and MacKenzie districts
- Mid to Lower South Island – whilst the volumes held well throughout Otago and Southland, the median price eased from the previous month albeit Southland in particular achieved strong gains in prices from the same period in 2018; the Queenstown/Lake districts maintained a very good range of strong prices and clearly dominated the other districts throughout the southern provinces.
Nine regions recorded an increase in sales compared to December 2018. Auckland recorded the most substantial increase in sales (+47 sales) in the three months to December 2019 compared to December 2018. Compared to November 2019, nine regions recorded an increase in sales.
Seven regions saw the median price of lifestyle blocks increase between the three months ending December 2018 and the three months ending December 2019. The most notable examples were in Gisborne (+26%), Southland (15%) and Wellington (+13%) and the most notable exceptions were Hawke’s Bay (-11%) and Nelson (-7%).
The median number of days to sell for lifestyle properties was two days longer in the three months to December 2019 than in the three months to December 2018, sitting at 56 days. Compared to the three months ended November 2019 the median number of days to sell was seven days shorter. Gisborne recorded the shortest number of days to sell in December 2019 at 39 days, followed by Manawatu/Wanganui (41 days) and Wellington (41 days). West Coast recorded the longest number of days to sell at 149 days, followed by Northland at 79 days and Canterbury and Taranaki at 67 days.
