House prices highest in country
Queenstown Lakes / Central Otago housing market reached an unprecedented high in December, with the highest average asking price for any region of $1,590,855.
That's a 16.2% year-on-year increase for the lifestyle region, according to the latest figures from realestate.co.nz.
Vanessa Williams, spokesperson for realestate.co.nz, says that's despite its distance from major business hubs.
"The average asking price in Central Otago/Lakes District is around half a million dollars more than in Auckland," she says.
The total number of properties on the market was 643, up 3.9% on the previous December.
New listings were down 13.7% on the previous December though, with 164 added to the market in December 2023.
Julie Scott, of the Queenstown Lakes Community Housing Trust, told RNZ the high prices make it "extraordinarily difficult" for low to moderate income workers.
There are 1160 eligible households on the Trust waiting list in Queenstown Lakes, where the average household income is $75k before tax.
"All those people on that waiting list have zero chance of getting into the market on their own."
Scott said it wasn't just hotel and tourism workers that were affected.
"We're also talking about teachers, nurses, police, all those key workers any community needs to keep ticking over. We struggle in this district to attract and retain key workers because of the housing affordability issue."
Scott said there was no silver bullet for the town's housing crisis but the key thing is to have a variety of housing options, including public housing and below-market rentals, rent-to-buy and assisted ownership programmes.
"One of the things we really need is more housing supply, and there's a number of reasons why there's a huge lack of that in this district, in Queenstown particularly. They include geography and the fact we just don't have the infrastructure to allow more housing to be built," she told RNZ.
Nationally, the post-election sugar rush appears to have worn off in the property market, as it was the lowest month on record for new listings - down 6.4% year-on-year to 4,828 new listings.
That's a 16-year low, excluding April 2020, when COVID-19 lockdown restrictions paused house listings.
Williams says as most Kiwis wound down to their summer break, the New Zealand property market followed suit. The data also indicates stock and average asking prices remained below December 2022 levels nationally.
"The summer break brings a different rhythm to the property market. We typically see a natural slowdown as people focus on festivities, time with their loved ones, and getting away to the beach."
Despite the holiday respite, some regional hotspots showcased a different story. In sun-kissed Coromandel, for example, year-on-year new listings were up 21.9%, stock was up 35.6%, and average asking prices rose above $1 million after a November lull.
"Regions like Coromandel often display a unique resilience during the holidays. The allure of beachside living and holiday homes tends to keep activity buoyant during this time.
"Moreover, the surge in new listings in this region suggests vendors were capitalising on higher visitor numbers."
New listings in Auckland mirrored the national trend with a 16-year record low. Down 11.7% to 1,392 new listings, Auckland had fewer listings in December 2023 than in April 2020, when COVID-19 lockdowns restricted the market.
Williams says while it’s not unusual to see a December dip, the decrease is more significant than usual.
"The last time we saw levels like this was December 2019, when nationally, there were only 5,528 listings and just 1,422 in Auckland. It starkly contrasts the more than 10,000 new listings which hit the market just a month earlier in November."
She adds that some vendors may be holding off on listing until the New Year because they aim to sell via auction, which is typically rare during the Christmas break. Selling via auction has been rising in popularity in recent months.
Across the country, 11 of the 19 regions saw new listings decline. The biggest decreases were in Gisborne (down 32.1% year-on-year to 19 new listings) and Taranaki (down 26.1% year-on-year to 136 new listings).
On the flip side, Coromandel (up 21.9% year-on-year to 117 new listings) and Marlborough (up 14.5% year-on-year to 79 new listings) saw the biggest increases.
December’s average asking prices were mixed, with regional New Zealand continuing to drive the market.
Standing out amidst the holiday slowdown, Central Otago/Lakes District, Nelson and Bays, Taranaki, Wairarapa, and West Coast saw both month-on-month and year-on-year growth to average asking prices in December.
For stock, nationally it was down 4.6% year-on-year.
This trend, typical during year-end celebrations, predominantly affected major centres like Auckland, Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Canterbury, and Otago. However, Gisborne had the biggest drop with only 74 properties on the market, a year-on-year drop of 30.6%.
Many places painted a different picture, with nine of our 19 regions seeing stock levels increase compared to December 2022. Coromandel and Central North Island led the charge with year-on-year stock increases of 35.6% and 27.1%, respectively. Stock also increased in Southland (up 17.3%), Northland (up 15.9%), Nelson & Bays (up 11.0%), Marlborough (up 7.9%), Taranaki (up 5.8%), Central Otago/Lakes District (up 3.9%), and West Coast (up 2.8%).
Williams says it all highlights the various ‘microclimates’ within the New Zealand property market.
"While the main hubs experienced a typical seasonal downturn, the stock increases in regions like Coromandel and Central North Island show that seasons can affect regions differently.
"While some areas hit pause for summer, others hit play."
