New Zealand's largest real estate agency sold a record number of homes last month as the market defies the usual autumnal downturn.
Harcourts sold 2188 homes throughout the country last month, which was its best May ever and second highest number of sales made in any month in the company's history.
That was up 8.6% on the 2015 homes it sold in April and up 23% on the 1775 home sold in May last year.
"So far we've seen little sign of the seasonal slow down that traditionally comes with the onset of winter. In fact the opposite is true," Harcourts chief executive Hayden Duncan said.
However the surge is sales was largely confined to the North Island, while sales numbers in the South Island were largely flat (see table below).
Sales were particularly strong in Auckland and Northland, where the company sold 745 homes in May, up from 660 in April and 41% ahead of the 529 it sold in May last year.
In Auckland and Northland, Harcourts' average selling price has increased by more than $100,000 in the last 12 months, rising from $696,188 in may last year to $796,558 in May this year (see table below), although that was still below the record average price of $830,186 set in March this year.
"Supply remains the biggest issue in most areas," Duncan said.
"While it is encouraging to see new listings in the Auckland/Northern region up 19% on May 2014, overall inventory is down 15.2% in the area compared to May 2014.
"Only Christchurch is showing an improvement in inventory compared to last year, likely caused by more rebuild stock coming on to the market.
"Wellington enjoyed continued signs of increased investor activity with sales volumes up 22.5%, though the average sale price was down 1%, indicating a higher volume of sales at the lower end of the market," he said.
| May 2015 | April 2015 | May 2014 | |
| Auckland & Northland | |||
| Number of sales | 745 | 660 | 529 |
| Average selling price | $796,558 | $795,429 | $696,188 |
| Central North Island | |||
| Number of sales | 505 | 445 | 362 |
| Average selling price | $342,993 | $346,523 | $341,488 |
| Wellington | |||
| Number of sales | 337 | 320 | 275 |
| Average selling price | $372,969 | $379,204 | $377,656 |
| Christchurch | |||
| Number of sales | 410 | 403 | 398 |
| Average selling price | $528,459 | $529,436 | $508,388 |
| South Island excluding Christchurch | |||
| Number of sales | 188 | 233 | 211 |
| Average selling price | $386,574 | $341,729 | $259,053 |
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4 Comments
My local contacts in real estate tell me that the level of inquiry and sales here in Northland and the Bay of Islands is very high.
Seems a lot of folk are looking to re locate from Auckland, particularly the BB's but also investors and folk with connections in the North looking at the less expensive areas. Makes sense to me, she's a great place in many ways.
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