The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand's housing price records were smashed in March with the national and Auckland median prices hitting new all time highs by a substantial margin.
In Auckland the median selling price was $720,000, smashing the previous record median of $678,000 set in December last year
That pushed the national median to $475,000, well above the previous record of $455,750 set in November last year.
The REINZ said 8,803 dwellings were sold in March, up 20.3% on March last year and the highest number of sales in any month since May 2007.
REINZ chief executive Colleen Milne said the rise in the national median selling price was almost entirely driven by the Auckland market, where the median price rose $83,000, or 13%, year-on-year.
"While the increase in the number of sales is more or less spread across the country, the movement in the national median price is almost entirely an Auckland effect," she said.
"Excluding the impact of the Auckland region, the national median price was flat compared to February at $350,000 and $5000 (1.4%) higher compared to March 2014.
In the Wellington region the median selling price was $421,000 in March, compared to $410,000 in February and $400,000 in march last year.
In Christchurch the median selling price was $440,000 in March compared to $425,000 in February and $418,000 in March last year.
Within the Auckland region, the annual increase in median selling prices ranged from 12.5% in outer Auckland (Papakura, Franklin) to 19% in Waitakere and overall, the median selling price in the Auckland region has increased by $83,000 in the last 12 months, which means property prices have been increasing at the rate of $1596 a week.
However in many regional centres, median price shave fallen over the last year.
Places where the median price in march was down compared to march last year were Whangerei, Hamilton, Napier, Hastings, Palmerston North, Wanganui, Levin, Lower Hutt, the West Coast, and Queenstown, while they were unchanged for the year in Dunedin.
Tauranga, Mt Maunganui and Rotorua all recorded annual median price gains above 10%.
To read the REINZ's full March report for all regions, click on this link.
The charts below track the movement of median house prices in all regions.
Median price - REINZ
Select chart tabs
37 Comments
Much of the difference in prices over the year can be explained by two factors that no one talks about much: falling interest rates and foreign money. Someone I know just got 7 cash offers after their first open home, all from Asian buyers, for a lifestyle property in Dairy Flat, and sold for about double what they paid five years ago. This is driving up prices big time.
Second, low interest rates make stupid prices seem affordable, especially for move up buyers, where the activity is really strong. Median price in Auckland in March last year was $637,000, with 20% deposit on a 2-year rate at 6.04% for 25 years, payment was about $3300 per month. Now median is $720,000, interest rate about 5.6%, with 20% deposit you're paying about $3570 per month. Difference is about $270 per month, big whoop de doo, lots of people can afford that and with the cash back banks were offering last year it covered most the difference.
hmmm no one else has tried to draw attention to foreign buyers pushing up prices? I think quite a few have tried to mention this, but it's normally always met with the people with vested interests calling you xenophobic.
Even though we seem to be one of the only countries in the western world stupid enough to allow this to go on.
It has been drawn attention to plenty of times. The Chinese are the elephant in the room that most people are either too complicit or too afraid to talk about openly.
It beggars belief. The opposition parties had sensible policies to shut down the foreign buyers, tax speculation and deal with the market failure directly by building more houses.
Instead we are the country stupid enough to put Mr Ostrich to do nothing for a third term. It's an ugly future.
This subject has been done to death over the past 5 years, more vigorously in earlier times, less so over the past year or so as people have given up as a sympton of what is called the "supermarket checkout trance". Nothing can be done. Stand in silence and wait patiently. Until it is a crisis
It isn't tapering off, it just continues.
Even the main-stream-media have given up on it.
That's what is called the cone-of-silence
The top echelons of government ignore it
John Key says it isn't a problem, as he builds his way out of a minor hiccup
The RBNZ fossicks around looking for a band-aids to plug the holes
When you consider the damage that is being perpetrated on the lower echelons of society
one can only conclude main-stream-media have been tapped on the shoulder and warned off
we bring it up, but the question is really _what can be done about it_?
Everyone here knows, everyone elsewhere is either profiting party or to scared to rock the teat in case someone important is offended (becuase that's who the higher ups like to hire, being who know their place)
We welcome your comments below. If you are not already registered, please register to comment.
Remember we welcome robust, respectful and insightful debate. We don't welcome abusive or defamatory comments and will de-register those repeatedly making such comments. Our current comment policy is here.