Auckland's biggest real estate agency group, Barfoot and Thompson, has reported sales volumes in June rose a further 5.8% from May and are up 54.9% from June a year ago, while its average house sale price fell 2.3%. These figures are closely watched because Barfoot and Thompson is the biggest agency in the biggest market and these are the first sales results for the month of June just completed. "The golden autumn that the Auckland housing market has been enjoying since March continued in June," Barfoot and Thompson said. It sold 861 properties in June at an average price of NZ$521,791, which was down 1% from June a year ago. "The Auckland housing market has made a remarkable recovery from the challenges experienced as a result of the past 18 months of economic downturn," Barfoot & Thompson Managing Director Peter Thompson said. "No-one was forecasting the speed, strength and solidity of the recovery in house sales activity, or the prices that are being achieved," Thompson said. "It's hard to dismiss the robust sales of recent months as a temporary reprieve in the ongoing decline of housing values. For the past six months we have sold on average 747 properties a month, which is on average a third more than the average of 561 for the same six months last year," he said. "At the same time values have remained firm, and for the last six months the average sale price has been $510,896, close to last year's 12 month average price of $513,597," he said. "The strength of the Auckland housing market can be added to the list of "˜green shoots' indicating that the economy in general and people's confidence is starting to stabilise." Thompson said finding new listings was a big challenge with total listings falling to a 20 month low of 5557. Barfoot and Thompson said demand for rental property remained strong. It let 735 properties in the month, the highest number ever in June, at an average rent of NZ$388 week, which was up from an average NZ$379 in May. "For the past six months the average weekly rent has fluctuated from a high of $399 (in April) to a low of $379 (in May)," said Mr Thompson. "Over the past six months rents have stabilised at an average of $387 a week, which is in line with the average for 2008."
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